Colleen's Creative Corner

Thank You

2012-02-24T21:25:00.000-08:00

TGIF! I had a long day today at work and so I'm really glad that it's Friday evening. I have some chores tomorrow, but Sunday it will be stamping time. I'm getting together with my little crafty group.

I'm cutting it close getting my SSSC152 card in. I just finished it last night. I kept things pretty simple with a single stamped image, some punched flowers and just a few colors. A few embellishments like a punched boarder, some yellow pearls and stitching and it's done.

Supplies
Stamps: Up In The Air Hostess and Thank You Kindly sets by Stampin' Up
Paper: Kraft/Crumb Cake, Old Olive, So Saffron and Whisper White card stock and Tall Tales DSP (retired) all SU
Ink: Memento tuxedo black and SU Old Olive ink pads and Copics (Y21, YG93, R02)
Other: SU Boho Blossom and border punches, Kaiser yellow pearls, sewing machine and dimensionals

Have a wonderful weekend and thanks for stopping by,
Colleen

Happy Birthday

2012-02-23T08:34:00.000-08:00

Hello fellow stampers and bloggers,

I love the new My Mind's Eye patterned papers, Howdy Doody, and couldn't resist using them again on my TESC152 card.

As you can see, I combined several of the patterned papers on this card, as well as lots of sewing and lots of bling. IRL, this card really stands out in a crowd. I stamped the butterfly potion of the image onto the pink checked pp with Melon Mambo ink and fussy cut it to place over the butterfly in the circle for the focal point in the card.

My mom has a birthday coming up and I think this card will be perfect for her. She loves pinks and blues and I think she will get a kick out of the bling as well.

Supplies
Stamps: Embrace Beauty set and Fresh Flowers set (greeting) by Taylored Expressions
Paper: SU Sahara Sand and TE pink and choice snow white card stock and My Mind's Eye -Howdy Doody patterned papers
Ink: SU Sahara Sand, Melon Mambo and Memento tuxedo black
Other: TE medium scalloped border die, SU ticket corner punch, Labels 18 Nesties, SU rhinestones, sewing machine, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Have a great Thursday everyone and thanks for coming by,
Colleen

Just For You

2012-02-22T09:38:00.000-08:00

Good morning. I've got a few minutes before heading out to work this morning, which is just enough time to post my Deconstructed Sketch 39 card.

This is not my usual style of card, but I have had this Die-namics doily die for several months and have not used it. I decided it would go well with this tea cup stamp from SU.

Supplies
Stamps: Tea Shoppe by Stampin' Up
Paper: SU very vanilla and peach parfait card stock, My Mind's Eye Howdy Doody Patterned Papers
Ink: Color Box chalk pink and turquoise
Other: Die-namics doily die, TE buttons, SU twine, Recollections paper flowers, SU pearls, the Big Shot, sewing machine and dimensionals

Have a great day, and thanks for looking in,
Colleen

Taylored Expressions February Key Ingredients Challenge

2012-02-21T18:19:00.000-08:00

Hi again,

I'm back with a second post today. I've been a TE Key Ingredients subscriber for a few years now and every month, I look forward to my kit coming in the mail.

When Taylor posted this on her blog yesterday, I knew I wanted to play along and I had just the perfect project in mind. A few months ago I was cruising through older blogs of my some of my favorite bloggers and I came across this post by Kristina Werner. I loved the idea and saved it to my stamping "ideas" folder. It turned out to be the perfect project for the "Take Note" theme of Taylor's challenge.

Please pardon these photos. :)

All the notebooks stacked together:

The 12 different notebooks:

All patterned papers and embellishments are from the February KI kit. All stamps are from the Vintage Dreamer stamp set released this month. I used some light weight card stock to make the covers of the notebooks because the PP is not large enough to make the cover as the video shows. I then just used the PP to cover the front of the notebook's card stock covers. Other than that, I followed the instructions in Kristina's video exactly.

I made 12 notebooks in total. They are going to be presents for my craft group. We have a get together this Sunday. I think they will get a kick out of them.

Supplies
Stamps: Vintage Dreamer set by Taylored Expressions
Paper: SU vanilla card stock, My Mind's Eye patterned papers from the TE Feb Key Ingredients kit, and white copy paper for the inside pages of the notebooks
Ink: all SU. Early Expresso, Garden Green, and Poppy Parade
Other: Various TE dies, Want-2-Scrap pearls, paper flowers and ribbon from the Feb Key Ingredients kit, hot glue and gun, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Give these a try. They're pretty cute!
Thanks for checking in,
Colleen

You're A Lifesaver

2012-02-21T10:46:00.000-08:00

Happy Tuesday morning stamping friends,

Here's a card I made for the current MFTWSC. I'm using a set from the new release called Firefighter Girl from the Pure Innocence line.

The papers are new as well, and I love the "country look" of this wood grain with the flowers painted on. The sketch is a pretty simple one this week and fun to work with, and I've kept my layout pretty simple.

Here is a peek of the inside. I used the bottom portion of the wood grained paper that I had trimmed for it to fit on the front of the card.

Supplies
Stamps: Pure Innocence Firefighter Girl set by My Favorite Things
Paper: Stampin' Up chocolate chip and riding hood red card stock, Neenah solar white card stock and My Mind's Eye "Dolled Up" patterned papers
Ink: Memento tuxedo black, SU early expresso and riding hood red, Copics
Other: yellow candy dots (made darker yellow with the Y19 marker), sewing machine, Die-namics die (inside), the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Here are the Copics I used:

Thanks for looking in,
Colleen

Just A Note

2012-02-19T16:24:00.000-08:00

Hi and happy Sunday afternoon,

I've been stamping away this weekend and I've gotten several cards made to post during this coming week.

For today's card, I'm sneaking in just in time with a card using the Mojo Monday 228 sketch. The papers and supplies are from TE's February KI kit, and the stamps are from TE as well.

Hummm, I just noticed that one of the candy dots has fallen off. I will have to get another before I mail this card. (I didn't notice it while I was taking the pics, LOL)

The circle image was stamped 3 times, once in brown, once in green and once in coral. I used Nesties and a punch to cut out different sections so they could be layered. The paper rose is also part of this month's KI kit.

Here is a look at the inside of the card:

The images in the lower left corner are part of the paper. The other three circles are stamped with the same stamp used on the front of the card.

Supplies
Stamps: Vintage Dreamer set by Taylored Expressions
Papers: TE green card stock and My Minds Eye - Lost and Found - patterned papers
Ink: Stampin' Up pads, Early Expresso, Sage Shadow and Calypso Coral
Other: TE houndstooth impressions plate, circle and Labels One Nesties, SU 1 1/4" round punch, SU corner rounder punch, paper flower, Want-2-Scrap pearls, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

I hope everyone has a great week and thanks for stopping in,
Colleen

I Love You

2012-02-07T06:00:00.000-08:00

Hi and happy Tuesday,

My last Valentine's Day card for 2012. I've used the Love Monsters set again. The layout is from Jen Shults' Deconstructed Sketch #37.

The monster is colored with Copics on Neenah Solar White card stock. Diamond Stickles are layered over the triple red heart stamps. Red Stickles cover the antennae hearts and silver Stickles cover his gloves. I also put Glossy Effects over his eyes. The label die is from SU.

Supplies
Stamps: Love Monsters set by Taylored Expressions
Paper: SU card stock and DSP (retired), black corrugated card board paper, Neenah solar white card stock
Ink: Memento tuxedo black, SU real red and Copics
Other: Stickles, SU label die, TE hearts border die, Glossy Effects, sewing machine, the Big Shot and dimensionals

Thanks for coming by,
Colleen

Hugs

2012-02-06T06:00:00.000-08:00

Good Monday morning to you,

I'm off to Seattle today. I'm doing some mentoring of a co-worker this week. The good news is that it is supposed to be sunny until Thursday. Other good news is that I will get to see my sister and nephews over the weekend before I fly back to San Diego.

Today's card uses Jen's SFYTT layout for February. I like this one with the long element down the side. This monster set from Taylored Expressions is too cute! I couldn't resist wrapping this little in a very bright package. Do these look like Christmas papers? They're called Christmas Wishes, but I think they look great doing double duty as Valentine's papers.

Most of the supplies on this card are from TE. The papers are from December's KI kit. The dies are from Taylor's January release as is the Love Monsters stamp set.

This sweet little guy is colored with Copics and I dropped some Glossy Effects over his eyes to make them pop out.

Supplies
Stamps: Love Monsters set by Taylored Expressions
Paper: TE green, red and aqua card stock, Neenah solar white card stock, and Bella Blvd-Christmas Wishes patterned paper
Ink: Memento tuxedo black and Copics
Other: TE Layering Doily dies (small and medium), TE Hearts A Plenty dies, Glossy Effects, corner rounder punch, sewing machine, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Have a great week all and thanks for looking in,
Colleen

I Love You

2012-02-05T17:53:00.000-08:00

Gettin' sketchy with MFTWSC57 today.

Hi all,
I'm finishing up my Valentine's Day cards this weekend. In today's post is a card for my niece Rachel, who is attends Western State College of Colorado.

My card features a Pure Innocence cutie all dressed up in pink and red. The papers are from TE's Valentine's Day Project Pantry kit. She's colored with Copics.

Supplies
Stamps: Pure Innocence "Being Cute Is What I Do" and "Say What" sets by My Favorite Things
Paper: TE choice snow white, Neenah solar white, TE pink and red card stock and Pebbles "With Love" collection patterned papers
Ink: Memento tuxedo black, SU Cherry Cobbler, Melon Mambo, and Copics
Other: Die-namics "Say What" die, Recollections flower embellishments, sewing machine, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Here are the Copics I used to color the image:

Thanks for looking in,
Colleen

Happy Birthday

2012-01-31T05:00:00.000-08:00

Happy Tuesday all,

This is the second card that I made on Sunday. I need a birthday card for a friend whose big day is coming up next week. I also wanted to get a card made using Jen's Deconstructed Sketch #36 before Thursday when her next sketch comes out.

I stamped the presents first, then masked them off to stamp the balloons behind. The ink was applied directly to the stamps prior to stamping. The birthday banner is part of the stamp set and I carefully trimmed it out to use as the corner element in the sketch.

Supplies
Stamps: Patterned Party by Stampin' Up
Paper: TE blue, green, red and snow white and My Minds Eye Lime Twist "Out of the Blue" patterned papers
Ink: all Stampin' Up markers Island Indigo, Lucky Limeade, Real Red, Sahara Sand and More Mustard
Other: Kaiser red and green pearls, sewing machine and dimensionals

Thanks everyone,
Colleen

Frosty and Fabulous

2012-01-30T05:00:00.000-08:00

Monday Monday, So Good To Me. . .

Another work week is here. As I mentioned a few days ago, this week will find me working in Arizona for three days. At least it's not July. I'm excited to get this week started because I'm taking the Standard Copic certification class on Friday. WOOT, WOOT! I am SO excited. I've grown to love my Copics and I can't wait to learn more ways to blend and shade while coloring.

I've been noticing many of you getting started on your 2012 Christmas cards and thinking I should get started myself, so with Karen's new Sweet Sunday Sketch #151 yesterday, I decided to get to it. I even have a new Christmas/Winter stamp set that I had not used yet to get started with.

Ms. Fabulous snowlady is colored with Copics and I used some Stardust Stickles to glam up her hat and scarf. She is framed with some tiny pink rhinestones around the big scalloped Nestie.
Here are the Copics that I used:

Supplies
Stamps: Frosty and Fabulous Snowman set by My Favorite Things
Paper: Stampin' Up red, pink and pool party card stock, TE buttercream card stock and Echo Park Season's Greetings patterned paper
Ink: Memento tuxedo black and rich cocoa, SU Riding Hood red and Copics
Other: Wonky Rectangle and Big Scalloped Rectangle Nesties, small pink rhinestones, SU pool party button, SU pink baker's twine, sewing machine, the Big Shot and dimensionals

Have a wonderful week everyone. Thanks for stopping by,
Colleen

Love Shack, Baby Love Shack. . .

2012-01-29T05:00:00.000-08:00

Who doesn't have this song running through their mind while playing with this sweet TE stamp set? :)

Here's my card for the new TESC151 challenge. Love the sketch this week and I'm so glad that Taylor and her crew are back with the Friday sketches.

I paper pieced the "Love Shack" with papers from January's Key Ingredients kit. (I think that the small heart paper kind of looks like bricks.) The heart windows are pieced with the dark red card stock from the kit then covered with red Stickles. The heart bushes in front are covered with green Stickles. The heart coming out of the chimney is from the new TE jumbo heart border die.

The rest of the papers and the heart buttons are also from the January KI kit.

Supplies
Stamps: Love Shack by Taylored Expressions
Papers: TE card stock and Crate Paper-Paper Hearts patterned papers
Ink: Memento tuxedo black, SU Riding Hood Red and R27 Copic
Other: classic circle and lacy circle Nesties, TE heart buttons, Stickles, sewing machine, the Big Shot and dimensionals

Thanks all,
Colleen

Hope Your Day Is. . .

2012-01-28T11:31:00.000-08:00

I hope your Saturday is "as happy as happy gets."

Hi everyone,
I'm on a stamping and blogging roll this week. I think this is my sixth day in a row of posting cards. I stamped almost every evening this past week, and I loved it! Unfortunately, starting Tuesday, I will be working out of town for the next two weeks, (sad face inserted here), so I'll be back to only stamping on the weekends.

Today's card I made with two challenges in mind. The layout is this week's MFTWSC56 sketch, and the papers I used fit for the Recipe Sapping In Print challenge at Linda's Catered Crop blog.

I used one of my favorite PI girls (is it possible to pick a favorite?) and several MFT Die-namics dies. Lots of sewing again as well.

The fence Die-namic is cut from cork for even more texture. To give the black newsprint papers more "pop," I added black pearls to the corners and to the center of the flower element.

Here's a peek of the inside:

More sewing and another Die-namics flower, this time with a black button and baker's twine for the center. The "happy birthday" stamp on the inside is from SU.

Here are the Copics that I used to color the image:

Supplies
Stamps: Pure Innocence Feelin' Froggy set by My Favorite Things and Teeny Tiny Wishes set by Stampin' UP
Paper: Taylored Expressions red, pink and buttercream card stock,
patterned paper from a TE Key Ingredients kit from 2009 ???
Ink: Memento tuxedo black, SU real red and Copics
Other: Die-namics Dizzy Doily, Woodgrain Fence, large Scallped border and Fringed Perennial dies, cork, Want 2 Scrap black pearls, sewing machine, the Big Shot, SU button, baker's twine, and dimensionals

Have a great weekend all and thanks for checking in today,
Colleen

Love Is In the Air

2012-01-27T05:00:00.000-08:00

TGIF!

I put this card together one evening this week while watching the Australian Open tennis matches. I love watching tennis, both on TV and in person. I played a lot in high school and college, and still love the game.

My card uses the current Card Positioning System layout, #252, sponsored this week by Taylored Expressions. Stamps, papers and dies used are all TE.

The papers are from the Valentine's Day Project Pantry kit. I love the reds and pinks with the kraft card stock. Speaking of kraft card stock, I'm entering this card in Jeanie's That's Krafty Thursday #57 challenge as well.

Supplies
Stamps: Love Everywhere set by Taylored Expressions
Paper: TE kraft, red and choice buttercream card stock and Pebbles With Love patterned papers
Ink: SU crumb cake and ridding hood red, Memento tuxedo black
Other: TE cloud border and clouds dies, TE hearts impressions plate, classic circle Nesties, pink rhinestones, SU corner rounder punch, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

I hope you all have a fabulous weekend. Thanks for stopping in today,
Colleen

Thinking Of You

2012-01-26T06:00:00.000-08:00

Happy Thursday,

I finally got my January SFYTT card done. I am going to try to do all of them this year. Last year I missed a few. This card certainly evolved. I had picked out my patterned papers to use, but when I was putting everything together, I decided I didn't like it, so, I ended up going with completely different papers, which I think work much better with the stamp. The first were way too bright and tended to over power the image. Anyhoo, here is my card.

The papers are from Taylor's January Key Ingredients kit. I was inspired by this card by Jodi and added lots of bling.

The heart and circle background is done with an SU letterpress plate and whisper white craft ink. I was hoping for a more embossed look, but I think I needed to add another layer to my sandwich prior to running it through the Big Shot. It ended up looking more like a stamped image instead of letter pressed. I still like the way it looks.

Supplies
Rose Wreath set by Taylored Expressions
Paper: From TE January KI kit, TE card stock and Crate Paper "Paper Heart" patterned papers
Ink: Memento tuxedo black, SU craft Whisper White and Copics
Other: SU letter press plate, classic circle and scalloped circle Nesties, SU corner rounder punch, SU rhinestones, TE ribbon, the Big Shot, sewing machine, and dimensionals

I'm looking forward to the weekend, how about you?

Thanks for stopping in,
Colleen

Love You

2012-01-25T10:00:00.000-08:00

As promised, here is the second card that I worked up for my craft group get together on Saturday. Since the other card is so feminine, I thought I should try for a more masculine card. The supplies are mostly from the Stampin' Up.

To get the dots fairly even around the large heart cutout, I placed the framelit die in the cutout area and then used a Spica glitter pen to make the dots along the edge of the die.

Supplies
Stamps: PS, I Love You set from Stampin' Up
Paper: SU grey, black, Cherry Cobbler and red glimmer card stock, SU DSP retired
Ink: SU Cherry Cobbler and black Spica glitter pen
Other: SU embossing folder, SU Hearts Collection Framelits dies, SU tripple heart punch, the Big Shot and dimensionals

Thanks for looking in today,
Colleen

From My Heart To Yours

2012-01-24T12:00:00.000-08:00

Last Saturday was my craft group get together. The first of the new year. We usually try to meet once a month and periodically, I will do some "make and takes" for the gals. Here is the first of the two cards that I worked up last week for Saturday.

This is an all Stampin' Up card using some of the newest items in the Occasions Mini catalog.

Supplies
Stamps: PS, I Love You set by Stampin' Up
Paper: SU Lucky Limeade, Pool Party, Wisteria Wonder, Island Indigo and Whisper White card stock and Sweet Shop DSP
Ink: SU Lucky Limeade, Wisteria Wonder and Island Indigo
Other: (all supplies are SU) large heart and Boho Blossom punches, Fashionable Hearts embosslits die, clear heart button, Island Indigo bakers twine, rhinestones, houndstooth embossing folder, dimensionals, and sewing machine.

I'll post the second card tomorrow. Thanks,
Colleen

Feel Better

2012-01-23T21:40:00.000-08:00

HI,

I made this card for a friend of my mom's who had a heart procedure on Saturday. He's doing very well and will be going home from the hospital tomorrow. I hope this card helps his recovery to be speedy.

The layout is MFTWSC55. The paper is all Stampin' Up. I added lots of stitching and Fred is colored with Copics.

Here is the inside:

Supplies
Stamps: Fred Bear Gives Comfort set by My Favorite Things
Paper: Stampin' Up Always Artichoke, Chocolate Chip, So Saffron and Whisper White card stock, SU DSP retired
Ink: Memento tuxedo black, SU Chocolate Chip and Always Artichoke, and these Copics:

Other: SU round and ticket punches, twine, sewing machine and dimensionals

Thanks for looking in all,
Colleen

Pink Bear {{Hugs}}

2012-01-19T06:00:00.000-08:00

Hi all,

I've been slowly working on my Valentine's Day cards. Here's my latest. This one uses Karen's Sweet Sunday Sketch #150 layout combined with Taylored Expression's new Valentines Project Pantry kit. I love the reds and pinks combined with Kraft in this paper pack.

I decided to color the bear pink, it just seemed fitting for Valentine's Day and I think she looks great. I also tried doing a straight stitch around the circle instead of my usual zig-zag. This is not easy! and clearly, I need some more practice, but I like the way it looks.

Supplies
Stamps: Buddy Bear set by Taylored Expressions
Paper: TE pink, kraft and buttercream card stock and Pebbles With Love patterned papers
Ink: Memento tuxedo black, Copics, SU Crumb Cake
Other: Spica glitter pens in red and lipstick, Glossy Effects, classic circle and lacy circle Nesties, sewing machine, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

I'm looking forward to the week end, how about you? Thanks for stopping by today,
Colleen

Sweet

2012-01-18T16:26:00.000-08:00

Happy Wednesday everyone,

I started this card on Monday evening with the intent of taking it's picture on Tuesday to post for last weeks MFTWSC54. Unfortunately, I came down with a really strong case of the stomach flu Tuesday morning and didn't feel like taking the picture for posting. After spending all day in bed yesterday, I'm finally feeling better this afternoon. I got my picture taken, so even thought this sketch is over, I thought I'd post the card anyway.

Supplies
Stamps: Pure Innocence "Make Mine A Double" by My Favorite Things
Paper: Stampin' Up Calypso Coral, Wisteria Wonder and Whisper White card stock and Sweet Shop DSP
Ink: Memento tuxedo black and Copics
Other: Die-namics border and pennant dies, SU brads, sewing machine, SU ribbon, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Thanks for looking in today,
Colleen

Love You, Kiss You, Miss You

2012-01-16T17:19:00.000-08:00

Hi all,

I received some new Stampin' Up goodies last week and opened them up to play with on Saturday. Since the new Sweet Stop 141 Sketch was out, I used the layout to craft this sweet card.

This is a SU only card and many of the supplies come from the new Occasions Mini Catalog.

Supplies
Stamps: PS I Love You set
Paper: SU Pool Party, Lucky Limeade, Wisteria Wonder and Whisper White CS, SU Sweet Shop DSP
Ink: SU Wisteria Wonder and Basic Black
Other: (all Stampin' Up) Labels Collection Framelits Dies, triple heart punch, scalloped border punch, Wisteria Wonder ribbon, Swiss Dot embossing folder, corner rounder punch, pearls, sewing machine, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Thanks for looking in today,
Colleen

Sewing Mends the Soul

2012-01-11T10:40:00.000-08:00

Happy Wednesday afternoon everyone,

I got home from work a little on the early side yesterday afternoon and decided I had enough time to make a card for Jen's Deconstructed Sketch #33. This card just "clicked" as it was being put together. Mostly, I design as I go, so sometimes a card will take awhile to put together. This one just worked with each idea that I came up with and was done in no time.

The papers are, once again, from a TE Key Ingredients kit, November 2011. The main element with the Quilt sentiment is pre-printed and came with the kit. I used the "receipt card" (also part of the kit) to stamp random images from Taylor's mini stamp set "Sew Happy".

The background papers were put through the SU Square Lattice EF to make them look more like fabric.

The buttons were put on as an afterthought and I think they work well with the theme of this card. They also make this card perfect for the current recipe challenge at Linda's Catered Crop. The challenge is to use buttons on our project.

Supplies
Stamps: Taylored Expressions "Sew Happy" stamp set
Paper: TE Parakeet and Frosted Teal CS and Jillibean Soup - Homemade 6 Bean PP
Ink: SU Early Expresso
Other: SU Square Lattice EF, buttons, mini glue dots, TE ribbon, TE small scalloped border die, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Have a great day all and thanks,
Colleen

You Captured My Heart

2012-01-10T15:30:00.000-08:00

Hey all,

Ok, Monday and Tuesday down and only three days until the weekend. Can you tell I'm having a hard time getting back into the work mode after my holiday vacation? LOL

I finished this card last night and I think it turned out pretty darn cute. The layout is SSSC149, and as usual, Karen has a great sketch for us to use. All of the papers are from Taylored Expressions December Key Ingredients kit.

Supplies
Stamps: You Captured My Heart set by Taylored Expressions
Papers: TE Chablis, Red Devil and Choice Snow white CS and Bella Blvd - Christmas Wishes PP
Ink: Memento tuxedo black, Copics and SU real red
Other: classic circle and large scalloped circle Nesties, red and crystal Stickles, SU triple heart punch, red Viva paper pen, sewing machine, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Thanks for looking in today,
Colleen

Getting Sketchy with MFTWSC53

2012-01-09T20:21:00.000-08:00

Good Monday evening,

Here's my card for the current MFTWSC53 challenge. I used the super cute MFT PI Ski Girl stamp set. Her clothes are paper pieced and her skis and ski boots have Glossy Effects over them for a shiny effect. In keeping with the circle theme, I used the Seeing Spots embossing folder for the background on the top circle and the candy dots for accents. She is colored with Copics.

The colors come from the current CR84FN Color Challenge. The colors for this challenge are medium blue, orange and yellow.

Supplies
Stamps: Pure Innocence Ski Girl by My Favorite Things
Paper: SU card stock and patterned papers
Ink: Memento tuxedo black, Copics and SU tangerine tango
Other: small and large classic circle Nesties, Seeing Spots EF, candy dots, silver gel pen, Glossy Effects, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Thanks for looking in all,
Colleen

Happy 88 Birthday

2012-01-08T09:54:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year all,

This is my first post after taking some time off over Christmas and the week after. I did some traveling to northern California and to Portland, OR to spend time with family. It is always so great to see them.

My first card of 2012 was made for a good friend who turned 88 last month. She is a Japanese American and eighty eight is a special birthday year in the Japanese culture. Her family held a luncheon yesterday for a belated celebration as two of her grandchildren attend college away and they are home now on break.

The layout is this week's Mojo Monday #222 sketch. The patterned papers are Japanese paper that I picked up over 10 years ago in Hawaii. The greeting is computer generated, so no stamping on the outside of the card. I looked up the information for Japanese 88 birthday on the web, and hopefully, I have the symbols correct.

Supplies
Papers: SU black and whisper white card stock, Japanese patterned papers
Ink: computer generated greeting
Other: classic circle Nesties, paper flowers (SU, TE and Creative Memories), Kaiser red and black rhinestones, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

I hope your weekend is going well. Thanks for stopping in,
Colleen

More December Birthday Cards

2011-12-19T19:22:00.000-08:00

Happy Monday evening all,
I hope everyone had a happy start to the week. Hopefully it will be a light work week for you. I will be finished with work after Wednesday until after the new year. I will be traveling to see my sister and her family in Portland, OR, along with our mom and brother too. It will be a fun, family filled Christmas.

As I mentioned in my last post, I have several family and friends with birthdays during Christmas week. I have two more cards to share with you tonight.

First up is a card for my good friend Martin. He will be a very young 70 something on Christmas day. He is a really fun guy with a great sense of humor, and into racing Porsche cars. I think he'll love this Bugaboo Digi Gus card. I used Karen's SSSC #147 again. Love it! I dropped some Glossy Accents over Gus' glasses to give him that big eyed effect.

The inside:

The second card is for a slightly younger guy. I used the very appropriate TE Moka Justin stamp and Jen's Deconstructed Sketch # 31 for the layout. Two of the border dies were cut, and the black layered under the red to give it a shadowed look.

Supplies
Card 1
Stamps: Bugaboo Digi Gus WTF
Papers: TE dark blue, medium blue and choice buttercream CS, My Minds Eye Stella Rose Hattie PP
Ink: Copics
Other: Screw brads and metal sheet from a very old TE father's day project pantry kit, Glossy Accents, and dimensionals

Card 2
Stamps: Moka Justin by Taylored Expressions
Papers: TE red and black CS and My Minds Eye Lime Twist - Out of the Blue PP
Ink: Memento tuxedo black and Copics
Other: Seeing spots EF, Die-namics border die, TE large round brads and peace sign brad, and dimensionals

I am so stoked that I have a spot in an upcoming Copic certification class. I'm looking forward to learning more about using these markers.

That's it for tonight. Thanks for looking in today all,
Colleen

December Birthdays

2011-12-14T21:31:00.000-08:00

Good evening all,

I finally have all my Christmas cards in the mail. Now I need to start on cards for my family and friends who have birthdays the last week of December. Believe it or not, I need to make six birthday cards for Christmas week. Here's the first of the cards. This one uses Karen's Sweet Sunday Sketch #147 and Taylored Expressions Moka Kristie.

Supplies
Stamps: Moka Kristie set from Taylored Expressions
Paper: TE teal, pink, red and choice buttercream card stock and My Minds Eye patterned paper
Ink: Memento tuxedo black, Copics and SU cherry cobbler
Other: Kaiser rhinestones, Stickles, TE ribbon, paper flower, sewing machine and dimensionals

Thanks for looking in today,
Colleen

Snow Much Fun for DS29

2011-12-07T13:45:00.000-08:00

Happy Wednesday everyone,

I made this card last weekend to add to my growing Christmas card pile. I used Jen's Deconstructed Sketch # 29 for the layout. As I've said before, this SU set is my favorite Holiday set this year and I've used it for many of my Christmas cards.

Supplies
Stamps: Snow Much Fun set by Stampin' Up
Paper: Taylored Expressions card stock and My Minds Eye 12 Days of Christmas PP
Ink: Memento tuxedo black and Copics
Other: SU snow burst embossing folder, Labels 9 Nesties, Die-namics border die, Kaiser rhinestones, TE ribbon, crystal Stickles, SU corner rounder punch, SU snow flake die, the Big Shot and dimensionals

That's all for today. Thanks all for stopping in,
Colleen

Sending You A Little Christmas and SFYTT

2011-12-06T19:49:00.000-08:00

Happy Saint Nicholas Day to all.

Here's my version of December's Sketch For You To Try. Of course, I made another Christmas card. I finally finished them all last night. I'm happy to say, I made them all different with the exception of two designs, and I made six of each of those. In the past, I usually made about 15 - 20 of four different designs, but this year I wanted to be more creative and do them all different. In the end however, I did make the two sets of six for time's sake. Now, I need to sit down and get them addressed.

On to my SFYTT card.

As you can see, I have another cutie PI girl. Her coat, hat and scarf are paper pieced. The rest is colored with Copics.

Supplies:

Stamps: Pure Innocence Sending You A Little Christmas set by My Favorite Things

Paper: Taylored Expressions red, green and choice buttercream CS and My Minds Eye 12 Days of Christmas PP

Ink: Memento tuxedo black, SU glorious green and Copics

Other: SU and Cuttlebug embossing folders, Die-namics die, Taylor's Tiny Twinkles in red, Viva Decor Pearl Pen in Cream, Kaiser large red rhinestones, SU red and green brads, sewing machine, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

That's all for this evening. Thanks so much for looking in.

Colleen

Warm Winter Wishes

2011-12-05T10:41:00.000-08:00

Hey all and happy Monday,

I didn't have time to get any blogging done last week between work, trying to get more Christmas cards done in the evenings and most importantly, not feeling too well. The dreaded winter cold caught up with me, but I'm feeling better today. I took today as a PTO day (vacation day) and my first order of business this morning was to get some pictures taken of the cards that I made over the weekend so I could post something. After that, I plan to make a few more Christmas cards then put up my Christmas tree.

Today's card I made using Karen's Sweet Sunday Sketch 146 from yesterday. Another fun sketch again this week (I pretty much feel that way about all of them. lol) Although I didn't post any, I actually made several cards using last week's sketch. I may get pictures taken of them later in the week and post. Anywhoo, here's today's card:

I stamped the image four times so that I could paper piece the sweater, scarf, gloves and cup, and I really like the way it turned out.

Supplies:
Stamps: Who's That Girl Gets Cozy With Cocoa by My Favorite Things
Papers: SU crumb cake and TE pink, light blue, and choice buttercream CS, My Minds Eye 12 Days of Christmas PP
Ink: Memento tuxedo black and Copics to color the mug of cocoa and do some shading on the scarf and gloves
(RV09, RV29, E11, E81)
Other: classic circle and scalloped circle Nesties, SU houndstooth EF, Die-namics die, TE pink button, sewing machine, hot glue gun, TE ribbon, the Big Shot and dimensionals

Have a wonderful week all, and thanks for looking in today,
Colleen

Wishing You. . .

2011-11-23T06:00:00.000-08:00

This week's Sweet Stop Sketch 135 looked like a fun one so I decided to play along. Since I had SU's Letters From Santa DSP on my table, I used it again. Love the look of this one.

Supplies:

Stamps: Button Buddies set by Stampin' Up

Paper: SU ridding hood red, old olive and whisper white card stock and Letters From Santa DSP

Ink: Memento tuxedo black and SU bashful blue

Other: light blue button, SU linen thread, Wonky Rectangles Nesties, TE medium scalloped border die, SU embossing folder, SU ridding hood red ribbon, red liquid pearls, sewing machine, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Thanks all,

Colleen

Hope Your Christmas Is. . .

2011-11-22T06:00:00.000-08:00

Snow Much Fun! Can I just say, I love this SU stamp set!!

Today's cards both use this set. I've used Jen's Deconstructed Sketch 28 for the layouts.

Supplies:
Stamps: Snow Much Fun by Stampin' Up
Paper: SU wild wasabi and real red card stock, SU glimmer paper in red and silver, SU water color paper, and SU Holly Berry Bouquet DSP
Ink: SU wild wasabi, bashful blue, soft suede, rose red, old olive, marina mist, tangerine tango, and basic black, Memento tuxedo black
Other: TE small scalloped border die, Die-namics large scalloped border die, SU corner rounder punch, SU felt holly, Diamond Stickles, Kaiser red pearls, TE red ribbon, aqua painter, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Thanks for looking in today,
Colleen

Fa-la-la-la-la

2011-11-21T06:00:00.000-08:00

Here's my card for MFTWSC 46. I've used another of my recent PI purchases, Christmas Caroler. Her dress is paper pieced. The rest of her is colored with Copics. The top of her boots are crystal Stickles.

Supplies:
Stamps: Christmas Caroler by My Favorite Things
Paper: SU blushing bride, early expresso and whisper white card stock. SU Letters From Santa DSP
Ink: Memento tuxedo black and Copics
Other: Die-namics die, SU punch, SU ribbon, SU felt holly, sewing machine, Kaiser red rhinestones, crystal Stickles, Spica gold glitter pen, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Thanks all,
Colleen

Happy Winter

2011-11-20T21:23:00.000-08:00

Another rainy weekend here in San Diego. Perfect weather to continue my Christmas card making, and I got another 6 completed today. Whoohoo!

Today's post uses Karen's Sweet Sunday sketch #144 layout. I combined it with TE's Woodland Winter stamp set. I just love these adorable little animals all dressed up for Christmas. Isn't this little raccoon just the sweetest thing ever? His sled is blinged out with copper Stickles. He's colored with Copics.

This color scheme comes from the current CR84FN 43 challenge.

Supplies:
Stamps: Woodland Winter set by Taylored Expressions
Paper: SU early expresso, old olive and crumb cake card stock,
SU Letters From Santa DSP
Ink: SU old olive and early expresso, Memento tuxedo black, Copics
Other: classic oval and scalloped oval Nesties, copper Stickles, Spica glitter pens in silver and black, Cuttlebug snowflake EF, sewing machine, plastic white snowflakes, olive green candy dots, SU old olive ribbon, white gel pen, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Have a great week all. It's a short work one.
Thanks for looking,
Colleen

Don't Open Until. . .

2011-11-17T06:00:00.000-08:00

It's Thursday. Only two more days of work to go this week. I'm actually in Las Vegas this week for my company's national sales meeting. We started on Monday and today's the final day. I drive back to San Diego tomorrow.

Here's another card that I made last weekend. It's another Christmas card and this one follows November's SFYTT layout.

Supplies:
Stamps: Pure Innocence Don't Open Until by My Favorite Things
Card stock: TE red, green and choice snow white
Patterned papers: 12 Days of Christmas by My Favorite Things
Ink: Memento tuxedo black, Copics, SU real red
Other: Cuttlebug snow EF, TE red ribbon, TE green buttons, red floss, red Stickles, SU twine, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Have a great Friday tomorrow and thanks for looking in,
Colleen

Merry

2011-11-16T06:00:00.000-08:00

First today, I want to congratulate Taylor on reaching 150 sketches. Her Friday sketch challenges are one of my very favorite to participate in, and TESC150 is no exception. Here's my card: (warning, you might want to put on sunglasses before viewing)

Supplies:
Stamps: Merry Little Cocktail by Taylored Expressiosn
Card stock: TE bright pink, green and choice snow white
Patterned paper: 12 Days of Christmas by My Minds Eye
Ink: Memento tuxedo black, Copics and SU Pink Passion
Other: TE Musical Swirls Impression plate, classic circle Nesties,
TE ribbon, TE small and medium scalloped border dies, SU oval punches, Spica glitter pens in green, blue and clear, Glossy Accents, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Thanks for stopping by today,
Colleen

Got Powder?

2011-11-15T06:00:00.000-08:00

Happy Tuesday fellow stampers,

One of the cards I made on Sunday uses this week's MFTWSC45. I'm using another new Pure Innocence set called Snowboard Boy.

I can't believe, in all my stamping supplies, I don't have a tag die. I hand made this one.

Supplies:
Stamps: Pure Innocence Snowboard Boy by My Favorite Things
Card stock: SU Buckaroo Blue, Cranberry Crisp and TE choice snow white
Patterned papers: Wintertime by Echo Park
Ink: Memento tuxedo black and Copics
Other: sewing machine, Cuttlebug snow EF, Die-namics border die, SU Cranberry Crisp stitched ribbon, SU snowflake punch, SU blue button and twine, silver Stickles, Sakura glitter pen, Glossy Accents, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Thanks for looking in,
Colleen

Happy, Happy, Happy Holidays

2011-11-14T06:00:00.000-08:00

I love Karen's Sweet Sunday sketch this week, and it worked perfectly for one of Taylored Expressions' new Christmas sets. I hadn't had the chance to ink up this cute little deer yet. I love him and I love how this card turned out.

Supplies:
Stamps: Woodland Winter by Taylored Expressions
Card stock: SU bravo burgundy, kraft, naturals confetti, pool party and TE choice buttercream
Patterned paper: Basic Gray Eskimo Kisses
Ink: Memento rich cocoa and tuxedo black, Copics, SU bravo burgundy
Other: SU snow burst EF, classic square and large scalloped square Nesties, SU ribbons, Sakura glitter pen, SU round punches, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Have a great week all and thanks for looking in today,
Colleen

Cozy Christmas Wishes

2011-11-13T19:42:00.000-08:00

I had a great weekend stamping and got some more Christmas cards made. Although I still have a ways to go, I am making progress.
Today's card is made using Jen's Deconstructed Sketch #27 and one the newer Pure Innocence sets.

I'm entering this card in Linda's Catered Crop, FTR25 challenge as well. My ingredients for this challenge are:

Colors: cream, red, and green
Images: winter scene, hollies and berries, Christmas
Tools: die cuts, scallop edges
Miscellaneous: ribbon, pearls
Techniques: layers and layers

Supplies
Stamps: Pure Innocence Stocking Girl by My Favorite Things
Card stock: Taylored Expressions green, red and choice buttercream
Patterned papers: Wonder collection by Authentique
Ink: Memento tuxedo black, Copics, SU cherry cobler
Other: Christmas baker's twine, SU felt holly, Kaiser red pearls, red heart rhinestone, red Stickles, classic square and scalloped square Nesties, sewing machine, corner rounder punch, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Thanks for looking in,
Colleen

Angel Wings

2011-11-07T06:00:00.000-08:00

Yea! Another Christmas card made. Karen's Sweet Sunday Sketch #142 and Taylored Expressions stamps and papers from Taylor's Angel Kisses Card Kit make up this one.

The angel's dress is paper pieced as you can see. Her face and hair are colored with Copics and her wings and halo are colored with a gold Spica glitter pen. I sponged white craft ink, SU, onto the cloud dies and on the patterned paper behind the angel. I wanted a kind of hazy look. Not really sure if it worked, though. lol. The small clouds are layered around the angel using dimensionals.

Supplies
Stamps: Joy To the World set by Taylored Expressions
Card stock: TE cranberry, pink and choice buttercream
Patterned papers: Eskimo Kisses by Basic Gray
Ink: Memento tuxedo black, Copics, Colorbox Chalk bright pink and SU craft whisper white
Other: TE clouds and cloud border dies, sewing machine, Want 2 Scrap pearls, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

I hope you all have a great week and thanks for stoping,
Colleen

Thank You

2011-11-06T12:53:00.000-08:00

It's a rainy Sunday here in San Diego and the perfect day to catch up on some sketch challenges. I've been away from my stamping again for a little while, so I planned to do nothing else today.

We took a mini-vacation to Chicago last week and had an absolute BLAST. We stayed with good friends for 2 nights out in the burbs, then spent 3 nights in a fab hotel right in the heart of the "magnificent mile" area. Along with our friends, we did all things tourists in Chicago should do: A taste of Chicago walking tour, the Chicago river architecture tour, the Frank Lloyd Wright home tour in Oak Park, visited the Adler Planetarium, shopped up and down Michigan Ave, ate Italian beef, Chicago dogs, frozen custard, Garretts carmel corn, had dinner at Frontera Grill, one of Rick Bayless' wonderful restaurants and lunch and drinks on the 96th floor of the John Handcock building. It couldn't have been a better time!

So, today's card is a Thank You card for our friends that we stayed with and who showed us such a great time. I've used Jen's DS26 sketch and Claire Keay's "Frosty Fun" ice skater. Our friend's little girl, Jenny, is a very accomplished ice skater, so I thought this stamp would be a fun one to use.

Her stocking hat is pieced with MFT felt and her skates are colored with a white gel pen and a glaze pen for a shinny look.

Supplies
Stamps: Frosty Fun set by Claire Keay and Homespun Birdhouse set both from My Favorite Things stamps
Card stock: pomegranate, flamingo and choice snow white by Taylored Expressions
Patterned papers: Life of the Party by My Minds Eye
Ink: Memento tuxedo black, Copics and SU cherry cobbler
Other: classic oval and classic scalloped oval Nesties, labels 3 Nesties, Die-namics loopy flower die, MFT felt, TE ribbon, TE buttons, Kaiser pink rhinestones, Spica silver glitter pen, white gel pen, glaze pen, pink floss, the Big Shot, mini-glue dots, double sided sticky tape 1/4", and dimensionals

Now that this one is done, I'm off to work on this week's Sweet Sunday sketch. I think it's time to get more Christmas cards done.

Thanks for looking in today,
Colleen

Merry Christmas

2011-10-24T21:09:00.000-07:00

I love the "center step" cards that I see around blog land, but I have never tried making one. . .until this weekend. I looked up the instructions on Splitcoast and gave it a try. Not hard at all with the right kind of trimmer to make the slits.

Here is my version using one of my favorite Christmas sets, Snow Much Fun. The image is stamped on watercolor paper and colored with my aqua painter.

I participate in a craft group and we meet once a month as time allows for everyone. We had a get together on Saturday and I showed everyone how to make one. A good time was had by all.

Supplies
Stamps: Snow Much Fun set by Stampin' Up
Card stock: SU watercolor paper, SU old olive, early expresso and whisper white
Patterned paper: SU Letters From Santa DSP
Ink: Memento tuxedo black, SU old olive, marina mist, ridding hood red, bashful blue, pumpkin pie and basic black
Other: classic and scalloped oval Nesties, Kaiser red pearls, SU stitched felt snowflake and mitten, SU rhinestone, SU aqua painter, Stickles, the Big Shot and dimensionals

Thanks for looking in today,
Colleen

Good Friendships

2011-10-23T23:33:00.000-07:00

It's late Sunday evening and the end of another weekend. I hope you all had a good one. Today, I had the chance to make a couple cards. The one I'm showing you in this post I made using Jen's Deconstructed Sketch #24 and a new stamp that the mail man brought me this past week with my latest MFT order.

I pulled out my October Key Ingredients kit from Taylored Expressions for most of the papers and embellishments. I was looking for fall colors to use and these papers work well. The paper on the top part of the card is the reverse side of the paper on the bottom. I inked the recessed side of an embossing folder with some red Color Box chalk ink before running through my Big Shot. For the oval with the image, I inked the raised side with rust Color Box chalk ink before running through. Such a fun look and a great way to add more dimension to the project. The heart is paper pieced, as you can see.

I've missed a few FTR challenges over at Linda's Catered Crop blog. I checked out the recipe, and the fall colors "ingredient" is what I started with when planning this card. Additional added "ingredients," patterned papers, Copic markers, thread, ribbon, paper piecing, sewing, die cuts, Autumn/Fall theme, and I'm ready to play along.

Here's wishing you all a wonderful week ahead. Thanks for looking in,

Colleen

Supplies
Stamps: Heart Felt by Claire Keay/My Favorite Things
Card stock: Hillary and choice buttercream from Taylored Expressions
Patterned paper: Farmhouse by Crate Paper
Ink: Memento rich cocoa, Color Box chalk in red and rust, Copics
Other: Flowers EF, classic and scalloped oval Nesties, mum flower and flower brad from October KI kit, sewing machine, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

More Halloween Cards - More Sketch Challenges

2011-10-20T19:07:00.000-07:00

Happy Thursday evening all,

One more day of the work week. It's been a busy one for me and I'm looking forward to getting together with my monthly craft group on Saturday for some crafty fun and good food. In the mean time. . .

I have a couple more Halloween cards to share tonight. The first one uses October's SFYTT layout. The stamps are from Taylored Expressions, one of the new Halloween sets released this year. I love this old Victorian mansion stamp. I made the windows bright and shinny with yellow Stickles. I suppose a rockin' party is going on inside.

Supplies
Stamps: Fangtastic set by Taylored Expressions
Card stock: light and dark purple, green, black and choice snow white from Taylored Expressions
Patterned papers: Happy Halloween by Echo Park
Ink: Memento tuxedo black, Copics, SU gray, sahara sand and craft white (sponged on the clouds)
Other: spider web ribbon by TE, TE cloud die, SU punch, yellow Stickles, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Card number two is for Karen's Sweet Sunday Sketch # 139.

Supplies
Stamps: Fangtastic set by Taylored Expressions
Card stock: TE light purple
Patterned papers: Eerie collection by Basic Gray
Ink: Memento tuxedo black, Copics, Spica black glitter pen
Other: TE pennant die, TE small and medium scalloped border dies, Kaiser green and purple rhinestones, SU circle punch, TE sparkly green ribbon, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Thanks for looking in,
Colleen

Witching You . . .

2011-10-18T22:21:00.000-07:00

A Happy Halloween.

Sorry for my absence these past few weeks. I was away from home for a few weekends in a row, so no stamping time. However, this past weekend, I did get to indulge and got quite a few Halloween cards made.

This card uses a new TE set called Moka Tabitha, along with a few stamps from the TE set called Celebrate Life. The papers and most supplies are from the September Key Ingredients kit. The sketch is the current DS23 sketch.

Supplies
Stamps: Moka Tabitha set and Celebrate Life set by Taylored Expressions
Cardstock: TE saltillo, beeswax and choice buttercream
Patterned papers: Campfire by October Afternoon
Ink: Memento tuxedo black, Copics, and SU Cajun Craze and More Mustard
Other: ribbon, ric-rak, and buttons from TE September KI kit, Spica clear glitter pen, Die-namics faux crochet border die, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Thanks so much for looking,
Colleen

From Santa

2011-09-21T21:39:00.000-07:00

Another Christmas card today. I'm making some progress in getting a head start on Christmas cards this year. Usually, I'm mass producing the first week of December. I'll probably still have some to finish then, but, not as many as I usually do.

Today's card uses the layout from the FTL158. The colors, Pacific Point, Cherry Cobbler and Black are from a previous Color Throwdown challenge.

Supplies

Stamps: "From Santa" a la carte stamp from Stampin' Up

Card stock: SU pacific point, cherry cobbler, black and very vanilla

Patterned papers: SU "Well Worn" DSP

Ink: SU basic black, cherry cobbler, blushing bride and craft whisper white

Other: SU corner rounder punch, SU snow burst embossing folder, SU ribbon, aqua painter, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Thanks for looking in,

Colleen

Snow Much Fun . . . and Inkspirations #87

2011-09-18T17:51:00.000-07:00

For my second post this afternoon, I have a Christmas card made for this week's Inkspiration #87 challenge. This week the challenge is a sketch challenge and I had lots of fun with this one. Bling really makes this one shine. All stamps and papers are from Stampin' Up.

Supplies
Stamps: Snow Much Fun and Sweets For the Sweet sets by Stampin' UP
Card stock: SU silver Glimmer, old olive and confetti white
Patterned paper: SU Big Top Birthday
Ink: SU real red, basic black, old olive and chocolate chip
Other: SU old olive satin ribbon, classic circle and large scalloped circle Nesties, SU large gold glitter, Kaiser red rhinestones, SU and Fiskars corner rounder punches, SU 1" circle punch, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Have a great week ahead and thanks for looking in,
Colleen

Happy Birthday, Cupcake

2011-09-18T13:26:00.000-07:00

I'm continuing my weekend of stamping today and the first card that I made this morning is a birthday card for a good friend whose birthday is coming up in a few weeks. I started with today's Sweet Sunday Sketch #135 layout. Karen has another fun and fabulous sketch for us. I love that she is giving us a head start by posting them on Facebook Saturday evenings.

For my card, I used mostly all newly released Taylored Expressions stamps and dies. Also fun and fabulous! I do love how this one turned out too.

Edited to add: I forgot that I wanted to add this card to the RCC20 challenge. (silly, forgetful me!). This week's challenge is to make a "punny" card.

Supplies
Stamps: Build A Treat set by Taylored Expressions
Card stock: SU kraft, chocolate chip, taken with teal, cherry cobbler and regal rose. TE choice buttercream
Patterned papers: My Minds Eye Lime Twist "Life Of the Party"
Ink: Colorbox Chalk teal and dark red
Other: TE Scallops and Petals impression plate, TE Build A Treat Tops and Bottoms and Tiny Toppers dies, Eyelet Circle and Classic Circle Nesties, Kaiser teal, pink and red rhinestones, TE pink, red and teal glitter, Quickie glue pen, sewing machine, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Thanks for looking in today,
Colleen

A Girl and Her . . . Toad?

2011-09-17T12:47:00.000-07:00

Happy stamping weekend!

This card I started after work yesterday but didn't finish as we decided to go hang out at our favorite local wine bar for a few hours before dinner. It's a great place to relax, enjoy each other and catch up on the week that was. After a few glasses of wine, we then headed out to dinner. Needless to say, I was way too relaxed to concentrate on stamping when we returned home.

I woke up this morning with some fresh ideas and this is how my card turned out. I pretty much love it!

The sketch is this weeks MFTWSC37.

Supplies
Stamps: Feeling Froggy by My Favorite Things
Card stock: SU more mustard, soft suede, and pool party. TE choice buttercream
Patterned paper: SU Spice Cake DSP
Ink: Memento rich cocoa, tuxedo black, SU soft suede and Copics
Other: Cuttlebug Seeing Spots and Perfect Paisley embossing folders, Wonky Rectangle Nesties, Spellbinder ribbon tag, SU soft suede ribbon, SU Spice Cake button, brown bakers twine, Kaiser gold rhinestones, sewing machine, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

I plan on stamping the weekend away. How about you? Whatever you do, have fun, and thanks for stopping by,
Colleen

Is Pink the New Orange?

2011-09-13T20:01:00.000-07:00

Good evening all,

I have a card tonight for you that I really had fun putting together. I've used lots of tools on this one. The sketch is Jen's Deconstructed Sketch 18. The colors of pink, gray and black, come from the current CR84FN38 color challenge and the pastel colors, die cuts and embossing will work for Linda's Catered Crop FTR20 challenge.

I reached for another new MFT Pure Innocence set called "Little Witch" that I received in the mail last Saturday. She's so cute! The patterned papers are some long retired Halloween and Valentine's Stampin' Up DSPs and, as you can see, her witches costume is paper pieced with them. I used craft black ink and Black Diamond embossing powder to make shiny, sparkly lines on all of the stamped images. For my layout, I rotated the sketch and also angled the two top panels for more interest.

The pink pumpkins are made from the SU small oval punch. Her pink shoes and the buckle on her hat are colored with a Spica glitter pen.

Here's the inside:

Supplies

Stamps: Pure Innocence "Little Witch" by My Favorite Things

Card stock: Stampin' Up textured gray and black, TE choice snow white

Patterned papers: SU retired Halloween and Valentine's DSP

Ink: SU craft black and Copics

Other: Judi Kins Black Diamond embossing powder, SU spider web, houndstooth and square lattice embossing folders, labels 4 Nesties, Die-namics double scalloped border die, SU small oval punch, sewing machine, pink Spica glitter pen, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

I have to get up really early tomorrow, like 4:00 am, for work. Not so fun! I hope everyone has a great Wednesday and, thanks all.

Colleen

Home Tweet Home

2011-09-13T06:00:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone,

Today's card uses some new My Favorite Things stamps and dies. I received my latest order on Saturday and naturally, I couldn't wait to use them. When I saw this bird house Die-namics die and coordinating stamps during the peeks, I knew I'd be ordering it. I've made this card quite colorful and I've used the current MFTWSC36 for the layout, sans the oval element.

Supplies
Stamps: MFT Homespun Birdhouse
Card stock: SU rich razzleberry and bermuda bay
Patterned papers: Lime Twist "Happy Go Lucky" by My Mind's Eye
Ink: SU rich razzleberry
Other: MFT Die-namics Homespun Birdhouse, Woodgrain Fence, and Rolled Mum dies, SU button and twine, sewing machine, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

I hope your week is going well. Thanks for checking in today,
Colleen

Knock If You Dare . . . .

2011-09-12T06:00:00.000-07:00

Good Monday morning stampers,

Yesterday I had the chance to stamp the day away. This is the second card that I made. It's my first Halloween card for this year. I love sending Halloween cards, so I thought I should get crackin'.

This card uses TESC #146 for the layout. I strayed slightly and didn't exactly use the three squares, but the basic sketch look is still there. I've used several new Taylored Expressions goodies from the September release. I love them all! I also used Kraft card stock so I can play along in Jeanie's That's Krafty Thursday #54 challenge.

Supplies
Stamps: Taylored Expressions Spooky Wreath
Card Stock: TE kraft and black from the Spooky Project Pantry Kit
Patterned Papers: Apothecary Emporium by Echo Park, also from the TE Spooky Project Pantry Kit
Ink: SU craft black
Other: Judi Kins Black Diamond embossing powder, TE Spooky Fence border die, TE wreath die, TE Spooky Impressions plate, TE brads, TE orange ribbon, SU round and square punches, sewing machine, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Have a wonderful week ahead, and thanks for looking in,
Colleen

SU Stocking Builder Punch - Sweet Sunday 134

2011-09-11T16:31:00.000-07:00

Yikes! I haven't stamped for a couple weeks. I hate it when that happens. Between work and a long weekend away from home, I just couldn't make the time. Today, I took advantage of being home with nothing more pressing and stamped all day.

My first card is for Karen Giron's Sweet Sunday Sketch #134. I always love working with Karen's sketches.

Other than the Nesties and a corner rounder punch, this is an all SU card.

Supplies
Stamps: Teeny Tiny Wishes by Stampin' Up
Card stock: SU real red, wild wasabi and very vanilla
Patterned paper: SU Holly Berry Bouquet DSP
Ink: SU chocolate chip
Other: SU stocking builder punch, SU scalloped border punch, SU embossing folder, SU buttons, SU real red brad, large scalloped rectangle and classic oval Nesties, sewing machine, Fiskars corner rounder, green glitter pen, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Have a lovely Sunday evening all, and thanks for stopping by,
Colleen

Happy Holidays

2011-08-30T17:48:00.000-07:00

Happy Tuesday evening all,

I'm "vegging" watching the early rounds of the US Open tennis matches. I look forward to it every year. It's a really fun sporting event to watch in person if you're a tennis fan. I had the opportunity to spend 4 days at the Open about 10 years ago. I'd go back.

Anyhoo, on to my card. I have another Christmas card done. The layout is Karen's Sweet Sunday Sketch #132. I kept my card fairly simple and except for using an oval instead of a circle, it's pretty true to the sketch. The stamp set and patterned papers are from the upcoming Stampin' Up Holiday Mini catalog.

Supplies
Stamps: Christmas Lodge set by Stampin' Up
Card stock: SU cherry cobbler, garden green, early expresso and confetti white
Patterned paper: SU Frostwood Lodge DSP
Ink: SU early expresso pad, cherry cobbler and garden green markers
Other: SU large oval punch, SU cherry cobbler seam binding, Spica green and clear glitter pens, Kaiser silver dots, and dimensionals

Have a great Wednesday and thanks for stopping by,
Colleen

Share The Joy

2011-08-29T06:00:00.000-07:00

Happy Monday everyone,

Today's card uses MFTWSC34 layout, and it's another Christmas card for my stash. I had lots of fun with this one! I broke out some new SU Christmas DSP from the up coming Holiday Mini catalog. I love the flannel look of these plaid papers. So warm looking.

The snow bear was colored with an aqua painter using a SU craft white ink pad. Once dry, I went over the entire image with a Spica clear glitter pen. It looks icy in RL. I'm not sure why in the photo it looks brown??

Supplies
Stamps: Fred Bear - Snow Bear by My Favorite Things
Card stock: TE snow white and SU garden green
Patterned paper: SU Frostwood Lodge DSP
Ink: memento tuxedo black, Copics, SU ridinghood red, SU craft white, and Spica glitter pen in clear
Other: Die-namics dies, SU ribbon, SU buttons and twine, Stickles,
the Big Shot, sewing machine, and dimensionals

Thanks for looking in,
Colleen

Wishing You. . .

2011-08-28T15:49:00.000-07:00

Hi all,

I'm starting to get serious about making Christmas cards. I know it's only August, but last year I was scrambling to get them done in time. The layout for this one is August's SFYTT at Jen's blog. Yikes! I almost forgot to make a card for this month. Unfortunately, I don't have any KRAFTIN' KIMMIE! stamps, so I'm using one of my new SU Christmas sets.

Supplies
Stamps: Polar Party by Stampin' Up
Card stock: SU kraft, riding hood red, taken with teal and whisper white
Patterned papers: SU DSP retired
Ink: SU basic black, taken with teal, riding hood read, crumb cake, more mustard, craft white and pool party
Other: SU embossing folder, SU button, SU punch, SU square brads, SU baker's twine, the Big Shot, mini glue dots, and dimensionals

I've been thinking of all those on the East Coast and New England in the path of Irene. I can't imagine how scary it must be!

Thanks all,
Colleen

Fabulous Day

2011-08-24T06:00:00.000-07:00

Happy Wednesday everyone,

I made today's card to play along with the TESC#144. I decided to do a landscape oriented card to fit the large TE die, but otherwise, I stayed true to the layout. The papers are all from the August KI kit.

Supplies
Stamps: In The Park set by Taylored Expressions
Card stock: TE Razzleberry light, Classic Yellow Green and Snow White, August KI kit
Patterned paper: Country Drive by Echo Park, August KI kit
Ink: Memento rich cocoa and tuxedo black, Copics
Other: TE label die and butterfly die, SU punches, Fiskers corner rounder, TE pink ribbon, pink rhinestones, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

I hope your week is going well. Thanks for stopping by today,
Colleen

Sending Smiles

2011-08-23T06:00:00.000-07:00

I haven't played along with the MFTWSC in awhile and I really wanted to get back to playing along. I think this week's sketch is super fun, and I really like the way my card turned out. Of course, how can it miss using a PI girl. The papers are all from the TE August KI kit. So pretty this month with all the bright colors.

Supplies
Stamps: Pure Innocence "Poppy" by My Favorite Things
Card Stock: TE Nautical Blue Light, Sunflowers Medium and Snow
White, August KI kit
Patterned papers: Country Drive by Echo Park, August KI kit
Ink: Memento tuxedo black, Copics and green Spica pen
Other: classic scalloped circle Nesties, Die-namics large scalloped border die, SU button, TE green plaid ribbon, SU pearls, sewing machine, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

I hope your Tuesday is a good one. Thanks for stopping by,
Colleen

"Snowbuddy. . .

2011-08-22T22:12:00.000-07:00

likes you as much as me!"

Hi all,
I have another card using my favorite Christmas stamp set from Stampin' Up. I wanted to use non-traditional Christmas colors and the July TE KI kit fit the bill. The dapper snowman is stamped onto blue card stock and colored with an aqua painter using SU white craft ink. The rest of the image is also colored with SU ink pads and the aqua painter. I've used crystal Stickles along the shaded edge and the center of the top hat for some snowy sparkle. The background is embossed with a new EF from the upcoming SU Holiday Mini catalog. The sketch is Karen's Sweet Sunday Sketch #131.

Supplies
Stamps: Snow Much Fun by Stampin' Up
Card stock: Taylored Expressions Flamingo and Aqua Blossom from July KI
Patterned paper: Life of the Party from MME, TE July KI
Ink: Memento tuxedo black, SU craft white, riding hood red, soft suede, pumpkin pie, certainly celery, and calypso coral
Other: SU Snow Burst EF, SU punches, Kaiser black and aqua rhinestones, TE green ribbon, sewing machine, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Thanks for stopping by today,
Colleen

Fall Days Are Fun Days

2011-08-16T22:29:00.000-07:00

Good evening all,

While I was on vacation a few weeks ago, I ordered some new Pure Innocence stamps from My Favorite Things. I love this fall sweetie with the carmel apple, so I decided to ink her up first. I'm using Karen's Sweet Sunday Sketch 130 for the layout. The colors, kraft, yellow and white, come from the current CR84FN36 color challenge.

I think this card works well for the current FTR18 over at Linda's Catered Crop blog. My ingredients are in red.

Colors – primary colors like red, yellow, blue (and green), and a little brown for dirt
Stamps and Stickers – anything that grows from a seed, gardening, back to school, worms!
Patterns – circles, checked/gingham, notebook paper
Color Mediums – stamping ink, markers (ProMarker, Copics)
Embellishments – buttons, ribbon, thread/twine
Tools – border punch, die cut shapes, embossing plates
Techniques – make a bookmark, mat your panels, tie ribbons through your buttons, machine sewing
Theme – garden, back to school

And, since I've used kraft card stock, this card works perfectly for Jeanie's "That's Krafty Thursday" challenge.

Supplies

Stamps: Pure Innocence "Carmel Apple" by My Favorite Things

Card stock: SU kraft, black, whisper white

Patterned paper: Pebbles Treehouse

Other paper: purchased corrugated kraft

Ink: memento tuxedo black and Copics

Other: SU flower and border punches, Fiskers corner rounder, SU houndstooth embossing folder, SU kraft button, white floss, white candy dots, Sakura gloss pen, sewing machine, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Have a great Wednesday all and thanks for stopping by,

Colleen

My Friend Card for SSSC129

2011-08-08T22:43:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone,

It's been "long time, no post" for me. I was on vacation for the past two weeks visiting my very good friends in Mass. Every summer they rent a beach cottage "down the Cape" and this year we flew out to join them. We had a blast, and a very relaxing vacation. It was the kind of vacation they are supposed to be.

We flew home to San Diego on Saturday and arrived home after midnight. On Sunday after unpacking, doing laundry and other errands, I sat down and created a card for Denis to give to his manager for her birthday this week. I used Karen's Sweet Sunday Sketch #129 layout. This is a SU only card using some of the new in-colors, new stamp set and retired DSP.

Supplies
Stamps: My Friend set by Stampin' Up
Card stock: SU sahara sand, island indigo, and lucky limeade
Patterned paper: SU retired
Ink: SU island indigo, lucky limeade, and pool party
Other: several SU punches, SU river rock stitched ribbon, SU clear buttons, SU linen thread

Vacations are always wonderful, but so is being back home. Thanks for looking in today,
Colleen

July KI Beach Cottage

2011-07-24T06:00:00.000-07:00

Happy Sunday all,

When you read this, I will actually be on vacation. This card is another of my Thank You cards for my birthday gifts that I made last Monday.

Since I had the TE July KI kit on my table, I used it again for this card. I think that the colors are perfect for this beach cottage.

While surfing blogs the other day, I came across this card on Jody Morrow's blog and absolutely loved the layout. I borrowed it for this card and I hope she doesn't mind. I really like how it showcases this stamp.

Supplies
Stamps: A Day In Paradise and Much Appreciated by Taylored Expressions
Card stock: Flamingo and Parakeet from July KI kit
Patterned paper: Life Of the Party by MME from July KI kit
Ink: Memento rich cocoa, copics, Color Box chalk ink in pink, and SU blushing bride
Other: classic square Nesties, Die-namics scalloped border die, TE glitter brads, sewing machine, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Have a great week and thanks,
Colleen

TESC143 "Dude! You Rock"

2011-07-22T08:00:00.000-07:00

Hey and Happy Friday all!
While Fridays are always great, it's an extra special, happy Friday for me today as I am one of the guest samplers for today's TESC143 sketch.

Thanks, Taylor for this opportunity!

When I saw the sketch in my e mail from Taylor, I knew almost immediately what I wanted to create with it. I've used one of the new July release stamp sets, Moka Justin. Isn't he just the cutest? I have two teen nephews who I love to pieces, and Justin makes me think of them. When I saw this set at release time, I knew I'd be snapping it up.

Here's the inside:

Justin is colored with Copics. The patterned papers are from last year's Rockstar Key Ingredients kit. (I thought a perfect showcase for Justin.) No ribbon and bow for Justin, so for the horizontal element, I used the guitar strings and the "You Rock" stamps from the TE 2010 "You're My Hero" stamp set and a paper guitar die piece from the 2010 Rockstar KI kit to finish the sentiment. The blue paper star die is also from the same KI kit.

To participate in this week's TESC, just create a card using the above sketch as inspiration. Upload your card to Splitcoaststampers and use the key word TESC143. All of the details can be found on Taylor's blog here.

To view the samples of the fabulous, regular TESC sketch crew artists and Pattie Goldman, my co-guest sampler for today, click on their links below:

Supplies
Stamps: Moka Justin and You're My Hero by Taylored Expressions
Card stock: TE blue, black, green and choice snow white
Patterned paper: Teen Angst by We R Memory Keepers (2010 Rockstar KI kit)
Ink: Memento tuxedo black, Copics, Spica glitter pen in silver, Color Box chalk ink for inside sentiment
Other: classic circle Nesties, medium and small black brads, paper star and guitar dies from 2010 Rockstar KI kit, Seeing Spots EF, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Wow! So much fun to be a part of this. Thanks all and have a great weekend.

Colleen

Mojo Monday #200 - Thanks

2011-07-20T07:00:00.000-07:00

Good Wednesday morning all,

Ah, first day of vacation. Today, I will be busy packing and getting ready for our trip to NE. I Can't wait.

In the mean time, here is a card that I made on Monday evening. I need some thank you cards for friends for birthday gifts I received this past weekend. This is one of them and it will be off to Sedona, AZ.

I used this week's Mojo Monday #200 sketch, and since my TE July KI kit came in the mail Monday, I opened it up right away to use.

Supplies
Stamps: Much Appreciated by Taylored Expressions
Card stock: TE aqua from July KI
Patterned papers: Life Of the Party by MME from TE July KI
Ink: Copics to color the chip board wheel barrow and flowers, Color Box chalk ink on sentiment
Other: TE picket fence die, classic circle, classic square and eyelet circle Nesties, chipboard from July KI, TE ribbon, TE buttons, Kaiser rhinestones, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Thanks all,
Colleen

Elephant Thank You

2011-07-19T20:44:00.000-07:00

Hi fellow stampers,

Today was my last day of work for two weeks. Yippee! I will be flying to Boston on Thursday to visit friends that live outside the city. We are renting a house on Cape Cod for the first week we are there. The second week, we will be at their house hanging out and making day trips around NE.

Sunday evening, I made this card for Karen's Sweet Sunday Sketch #126.

Supplies
Stamps: Life Is A Circus by Taylored Expressions and Happy Moments by Stampin' Up
Card stock: TE medium blue and choice snow whiite
Patterned paper: My Minds Eye
Ink: Memento tuxedo black, SU tangerine tango, Color Box chalk ink in blue, and Copics
Other: SU 3/4" round punch, SU star eyelet, SU tangerine tango pompom ribbon, sewing machine, and dimensionals.

Thanks for looking in tonight,
Colleen

MFTWSC28 Sending You Hugs

2011-07-18T15:36:00.000-07:00

Hi and happy Monday everyone. I had a great weekend and I hope you all did too. Our good friends from the central coast spent Saturday night with us and we all went to a dinner party at another friend's hours. Great food and great conversation.

Saturday afternoon before our friends arrived, I did some stamping and made a card for this week's MFTWSC 28. I needed a birthday card for a co-worker and this one will be perfect for her.

Supplies
Stamps: Pure Innocence "Bunch Of Blooms" by My Favorite Things
Card stock: SU so saffron, tempting turquoise, old olive and TE choice snow white
Patterned paper: SU retired
Ink: Memento tuxedo black and Copics
Other: SU flower and corner rounder punches, SU buttons, SU linen thread, SU tiny pearls, TE polka dot ribbon, Spica glitter pens, rhinestone flower, sewing machine, and dimensionals

Have a great afternoon and evening,
Colleen

Sending You Love; TESC #142

2011-07-12T19:01:00.000-07:00

Hey stamping friends,

I had time to get three cards made on Sunday afternoon. Today I have the final one for you. It's a card that I made for the Taylored Expressons sketch challenge #142. This sketch was certainly challenging for me. {lol} I did some contemplating about what to do, that's for sure.

What I came up with is this little hot air balloon scene. I used my new TE clouds impressions plate on some light blue cs and then used a sponge dauber to swirl on some darker blue and white chalk ink. The hills are just patterned papers cut in curves and stitched.

All of the cs and pp are from the June Key Ingredients kit.

Supplies
Stamps: Love Everywhere by Taylored Expressions
Card stock: TE patina and painted desert
Patterned Paper: Sweet Threads by Basic Grey
Ink: Color Box chalk ink
Other: TE clouds impression plate and cloud die, sewing machine, SU medium oval punch, heart rhinestone, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Thanks for stopping by today,
Colleen

MFTWSC27 Hello Cupcake

2011-07-11T21:24:00.000-07:00

I have a very quick post tonight with a card for this week's MFTWSC27. I rotated the layout and used the super cute PI girl, Hello Cupcake. She is colored with Copics and her dress is paper pieced. She will make the perfect birthday card for a friend.

Supplies
Stamps: Pure Innocence "Hello, Cupcake" by My Favorite Things
Card stock: Taylored Expressions cranberry and choice snow white
Patterned paper: B-day Bash by Imaginisce
Ink: Memento tuxedo black, Copics
Other: classic oval and scalloped oval Nesties, TE medium scallop border die, SU seam binding, SU button, SU twine, Kaiser gold rhinestones, Spica glitter pen, red Liquid Pearls, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Have a great Tuesday,
Colleen

Happy Birthday

2011-07-10T22:23:00.000-07:00

I hope everyone had a fun and restful weekend. Mine was great, but, why are they always too short? This afternoon I had some time to get some stamping in and I made a fun card for this week's Sweet Sunday Sketch challenge.

I used one of the July release sets from Taylored Expressions called Life is A Circus. So, so cute!

and here is a peek at the inside:

The circus train was both paper pieced and colored with Copic markers, cut out and popped up on dimensionals.

Supplies
Stamps: Life Is A Circus by Taylored Expressions
Card stock: red, yellow, teal and choice snow white by TE
Patterned paper: Lime Twist "Out of the Blue" by MME
Ink: Memento tuxedo black, SU taken with teal and Copics
Other: TE seeing stars die and star border die, TE stars impression plate, classic circle and wonky rectangle Nesties, SU circle punches, sewing machine, the Big Shot and dimensionals

Have a great week,
Colleen

Summer Fun and Mojo #198

2011-07-05T22:04:00.000-07:00

Well, it was back to work today and I for one didn't really want to go. But, it was a good day and I got much accomplished. When I got home I had a chance to finish this card that I started yesterday for this week's Mojo Monday sketch #198.

This all began with the patterned paper. I received a new 6x6 pack called Summer Fun from Echo Park. I couldn't resist the carnival and ice cream cones. The stamp is a really, really old one from Hero Arts.

Although I didn't take a picture of the inside, I used a TE stamp that says "Summer Afternoon, the two most beautiful words in the English language." (quote by Henry James) The perfect sentiment for this.

Supplies
Stamps: Hero Arts
Card stock: SU
Pattern papers: Echo Park
Ink: SU craft black, Copics
Other: SU clear embossing powder, Cuttlebug EF, SU punches, SU buttons, paper crimper, SU crafters tool kit, ribbon, Doodlebug ice cream cone brad, sewing machine and dimensionals

Thanks for stopping by,
Colleen

Snow Much Fun . . . again

2011-07-04T13:21:00.000-07:00

My second post today is a card using the new Stampin' Up set called "Snow Much Fun". I {heart} this set and will be using it for many of my Christmas cards.

Today, I'm using some "not so Christmasy" colors. The sketch comes from this week's Sweet Stop sketch # 115. The colors come from the Inkspirations Challenge #76, and finally I'm posting it to the Paper Players challenge #54, Christmas In July theme.

Supplies
Stamps: Snow Much Fun by Stampin' Up
Card stock: SU peach parfait, poppy parade and whisper white
Patterned Paper: Kitchen Spice by Bo Bunny
Ink: Memento tuxedo black, SU baja breeze, peach parfait, poppy parade, soft suede, pumpkin pie
Other: SU punches, SU ribbon, Stickles, aqua painter, mini glue dots and dimensionals

Have a great Monday afternoon and thanks,
Colleen

Hello

2011-07-04T11:16:00.000-07:00

A quick post this morning with my Sweet Sunday Sketch #124 card. I wasn't sure about how I'd like these colors together when I started, even thought the SU patterned papers used them. I think they work pretty well.

This is a mostly SU card. Enjoy.

Supplies
Stamps: SU "Love and Care" and "Swirls and Curls Verses" sets
Card stock: SU melon mambo, tangerine tango and TE choice snow white
Patterned papers: SU Beyond the Garden DSP
Ink: SU melon mambo, tangerine tango, wild wasabi and basic black
Other: SU border punches, Fiskars corner rounder punch, classic oval and scalloped oval Nesties, SU EF, SU felt flowers, SU rhinestone brad, star dust Stickles, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Thanks so much,
Colleen

Let's Chat

2011-07-03T10:51:00.000-07:00

It's been too long since I've played in the Follow The Recipe challenge over at Linda's Catered Crop blog, so last night I decided to join in the fun and make a card for FTR15.

I chose to use Jen's July SFYTT layout, just posted yesterday. The sponsor this month is My Favorite Things, and I've used one of my favorite PI stamps.

There's tons of texture on this card. Too much?? Remember Linda's post a few days ago with quotes from some of her favorite romcoms? When I start adding. . . and adding. . . and adding, elements to my cards, in the back of my mind I always hear "More isn't always better Linus, sometimes it's just more." I find this quote very appropos sometimes. It's from one of my all time fav romcoms, with one of my all time favorite romantic comedy leading men. So, can you guess which movie? Can you guess which actor?

Anyhoo, here's "Let's Chat":

And the inside:

My ingredients used per FTR15 are:
colors: yellow, green, red
patterns: polka dots
embellishments: buttons and baker's twine
tools: dimensionals (I DO love dimensionals)
theme: friendship

I think the polka dot ingredient must have stuck with me, as that seems to have become the main theme for the card. Lot's of them with the patterned paper and the embossing folder. I do love the way it turned out too. {guess it's okay to say that about one's own card}

Supplies
Stamps: Pure Innocence "Lady Bug" and "Say What" sets by My Favorite Things
Card stock: SU crumb cake, not quite navy, summer sun and TE choice buttercream
Patterned paper: Cosmo Cricket
Ink: Memento tuxedo black, SU not quite navy and Copics
Other: Seeing Spots EF, Die-namics dies, Fiskars corner rounder punch, SU buttons, SU die, paper flowers, crystal Stickles, candy dot, yellow rhinestones, cork sheet, sewing machine, baker's twine, the Big Shot, mini glue dots and lots of dimensionals

Have a fabulous Sunday and thanks,
Colleen

PS: The movie is Sabrina, the remake with Harrison Ford. Although, the original was great as well.

Happy Fourth of July 2011

2011-07-02T16:11:00.000-07:00

Happy Saturday all,

For those in the US, I hope everyone is enjoying day number one of a three day weekend. (I hope everyone has a three day weekend). I took advantage this morning to do some stamping and made a card for the current TESC141. Since it is 4th of July weekend, I made an appropriate card.

I started with some We R Memories "Old Glory" patterned papers and a TE stamp set called Uncle Sam. A pretty quick and easy card until I decided to add rhinestones to the sparkler. Thank goodness for Embellie Jellie.

The gold-ish polka dot paper was embossed with the TE stars impressions plate, then sponged with chalk ink to bring out the stars. Taylor had a video tutorial on her blog a few days ago doing this with her cloud die. Great idea! (Thanks Taylor)

Supplies
Stamps: Uncle Sam by Taylored Expressions
Card stock: SU cherry cobbler and marina mist, TE choice buttercream
Patterned paper: Old Glory by We R Memories
Ink: memento tuxedo black, Copics, Color Box chalk gold
Other: TE stars impressions plate, SU star, circle and small corner rounder punches, sewing machine, star shaped rhinestones, round rhinestones, SU vanilla brad, the Big Shot, and dimensionals.

Thanks for stopping by today,
Colleen

SU Happy Birthday and Triple Layer Punch

2011-06-25T05:00:00.000-07:00

Here's a quick post of a quick all SU card.

I wanted to play with the triple layer punches from the SU summer mini catalog, and do something a little different than using them as flowers on stems. Here's what I came up with. The papers are the new in-colors.

Supplies
Stamps: SU Happiest Birthday Wishes hostess set from 2011-2012 Idea Book and Catalog
Card stock: SU textured and plain calypso coral, wisteria wonder, and lucky limeade, SU textured whisper white
Ink: SU concord crush
Other: SU triple layer punch, SU scalloped circle punch, SU 1 1/4" and 1" circle punches, SU white brads, SU top note die, corner rounder, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Have a great Saturday all, and thanks.
Colleen

Happy Summer - Happy Birthday

2011-06-24T19:03:00.000-07:00

Yikes! I'm almost too late posting a card for June's SFYTT. I really didn't have that much stamping time this month, with traveling to Oregon for my niece's graduation and traveling for work.

I made this card last Tuesday evening to send to our friend Kathy, who lives in Mass. Her birthday is this week. We are going to be spending two weeks at the end of July and first of August with she and the family on Cape Cod. Sooooo looking forward to that!!!

Anyhoo, this card uses more new stamps, dies and papers that I got from Taylored Expressions.

I angled the large square panel some for added interest. I like this look. In my early stamping days, I used this angled panel a lot. Miss Belle penguin is colored with Copics and, as you can see, I sewed around all of the panels.

Stamps: Beach Belle by Taylored Expressions
Card stock: SU cool caribbean, pacific point, close to cocoa and garden green, TE choice snow white
Patterned papers: Splash by Echo Park
Ink: Memento tuxedo black, Copics, SU pacific point
Other: TE wave border and palm tree dies, classic circle and scalloped circle Nesties, SU oval punch, sewing machine, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Yea, it's Friday! Have a fabulous weekend everyone,
Colleen

Christmas in June

2011-06-21T09:12:00.000-07:00

Playing with more new goodies, today I have a Christmas card made with one of the new Christmas sets that will be in the new SU catalog available July 1. I know you've seen this cute guy in other posts around blog land. I used SU inks and my aqua painter to water color the image.

Stamps: Snow Much Fun by Stampin' Up
Card stock: SU baja breeze, wild wasabi, confetti white
Patterned paper: SU Just Add Cake DSP
Ink: memento tuxedo black, SU wild wasabi, baja breeze, pumpkin pie, basic black, riding hood red, blushing bride, more mustard
Other: SU punches, SU crafter's tool kit, SU twine, diamond stickles, aqua painter, dimensioinals.

Have a great Tuesday and thanks for stopping by,
Colleen

XOXO - June Key Ingredients meets MFTWSC24

2011-06-20T05:00:00.000-07:00

Good Monday Morning all. Yesterday I had time to make a card for this week's My Favorite Thing's Wednesday Sketch Challenge. It's always good to be able to showcase my growing collection of Pure Innocence girls.

I flipped the sketch to accommodate my chosen stamp. The card stock, patterned paper, paper flowers and brad all come from TE's June KI kit. I did throw in some black card stock for accent. Her skirt is paper pieced. The rest of her is colored with Copics. A pink Spica glitter pen accents the heart in her hair, belt and shoes.

Supplies
Stamps: Pure Innocence "Primrose" and "Say What" sets by My Favorite Things
Card stock: SU black, TE magenta, pink, light blue and choice buttercream
Patterned paper: Sweet Threads by Basic Grey
Ink: Memento tuxedo black, Copics, Spica glitter pink
Other: Die-namics simply scallops large and decorative doily dies, TE wood grain impressions die, SU punch, TE paper flowers, TE pink brad, sewing machine, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Have a great day and thanks for stopping in,
Colleen

The Perfect Adventure . . .

2011-06-19T17:20:00.000-07:00

. . . in green, aqua, and yellow. I decided to combine two weekend challenges today. The color scheme for my card comes from the current CR84FN color challenge, and the layout is today's Sweet Sunday Sketch 122 challenge.

Other than the Nesties, my card is an all Stampin' Up card. Haven't done that in awhile. The scooter is water colored with SU inks and my aqua painter.

Supplies
Stamps: On the Grow set by Stampin' Up
Card stock: SU pear pizzazz, daffodil delight, tempting turquoise and whisper white
Ink: Memento tuxedo black, SU pear pizzazz, daffodil delight, tempting turquoise, basic black and sahara sand
Other: SU ribbons, SU flower brads, SU Garden EF, classic circle and scalloped circle Nesties, sewing machine, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Have a fabulous Sunday evening all.
Colleen

TESC140 and Old MacDonald Had A Farm

2011-06-14T05:00:00.000-07:00

While I should have been doing some work Monday night (I have to prepare a talk for eight Pathologists for next Monday) instead I stamped while watching the Padre game. I wanted to play with more new TE goodies and make a card for Friday's sketch. I inked up my new Green Acres set. Is this set cute or what!?

Supplies
Stamps: Green Acres by Taylored Expressions
Card stock: SU riding hood red, not quite navy, TE choice snow white
Patterned paper: SU retired
Ink: memento tuxedo black, Copics, SU riding hood red
Other: classic circle and scalloped circle Nesties, Die-namics grass die, SU punches, yellow candy dots, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Have a great day and Thanks,
Colleen

Relax - Slow Down - Enjoy

2011-06-13T22:29:00.000-07:00

Hi all,

Wow, it's been a long time since I've been able to stamp. Not that I'm really complaining since I had some really fun time away. First, Memorial Day weekend, we went to the Central Coast wine country and had a blast visiting friends and, of course, wine tasting. The week after I was out of town working and then this past week, I was on vacation in Portland, OR visiting my sister's family. While there, I was able to attend my niece's high school graduation ceremony. Fun times. I got home late Saturday evening.

Sunday afternoon I was able to get a few hours of stamping in. I took the opportunity to ink up some new goodies from Taylored Expressions and made a card using Karen's Sweet Sunday Sketch #121 layout.

Supplies
Stamps: A Day In Paradise from Taylored Expressions
Card stock: TE medium blue, light blue, orange and choice snow white
Patterned paper: Splash by Echo Park
Ink: memento rich cocoa, SU marina mist, crumb cake and baja breeze
Other: classic circle and wonky rectangle Nesties, SU aqua painter, glaze pen, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Have a great Tuesday and thanks for stopping by,
Colleen

TESC138 Graduation Card

2011-05-25T05:00:00.000-07:00

It's "hump day" and that means only a few more days until a three day week end. Do you have plans? We are going to visit our friends again who live in the Central Coast wine country. I love it there, so I can't wait.

Today I have another graduation card made with the TE Dream Big set. Again, it's for one of my nephews. I made this following the latest TESC sketch, #138.

Supplies
Stamps: Dream Big by Taylored Expressions
Card stock: SU brilliant blue and TE choice snow white
Patterned paper: My Mind's Eye
Ink: memento tuxedo black, SU brilliant blue, Copics
Other: SU circle and star punches, SU star brads, dimensionals

Have a great day and thanks for stopping by,
Colleen

Graduation Congrats and SSS109

2011-05-24T20:17:00.000-07:00

Good Tuesday evening all,

I have a quick post tonight with a card I made for this week's Sweet Stop sketch challenge. This week it's a Sketch With a Spin, "make it masculine." While most are probably thinking Father's Day, I am in need of graduation cards for two nephews. This older SU paper looks "boyish" to me, so I think this card meets the requirements.

Supplies
Stamps: Taylored Expressions set Dream Big
Card stock: SU bashful blue, brilliant blue and TE choice snow white
Patterned paper: SU retired
Ink: SU brilliant blue, memento tuxedo black, Copics
Other: classic circle and classic square Nesties, sewing machine, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Thanks for stopping by,
Colleen

Get Well Wishes

2011-05-22T17:04:00.000-07:00

Here's a bright, cheery card that will hopefully make my friend feel a little better while recovering from surgery. The sketch is this week's Sweet Sunday Sketch 118. The card stock and patterned papers are from the May's Key Ingredients kit and most supplies and stamps are from Taylored Expressions.

I love these little birdies on this patterned paper. I thought this week's sketch was a perfect way to show them off. I also love making these rosettes. I do have a hard time figuring out how to keep them glued to the punched circles. They keep popping out! Does anyone have any suggestions??

Supplies
Stamps: Labels Of Love by Taylored Expressions
Card stock: bright red and choice snow white by TE
Patterned paper: Happy Go Lucky by American Crafts
Ink: SU real red and certainly celery
Other: SU round punches, oval Nesties, Ribbon Tag Trio Three Shapeabilities, TE leaf die, TE scalloped border die, red Kaiser pearl, TE stitched ribbon, sewing machine, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Have a great Sunday evening and thanks for stopping by,
Colleen

Birthday Wishes

2011-05-11T20:02:00.000-07:00

Ahhhh, Wednesday is almost over and that means only two more days to the weekend, which are my main stamping days. Tonight, I'm sharing a card I made on Sunday for the Sweet Stop Sketch.

This is a really fun layout, and I kept my card relatively simple. The image is a digital from Mo Manning Digi Stamps. This cute guy reminded me of my nephew, so I colored him up for my nephew's birthday card.

Supplies
Stamps: Digital image "Paul Typing" from Mo Manning
Card stock: SU pumpkin pie, soft suede, and whisper white
Patterned papers: Cosmo Cricket Lil' Man
Ink: memento tuxedo black, rich cocoa and Copics
Other: Die-namics die, oval Nestie, SU circle punches, SU build a brad, blue candy dots, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Thanks,
Colleen

You Make My World Happy

2011-05-10T05:00:00.000-07:00

Hi all,
I have a quick post this morning. Here's my card for MFTWSC18.
I've used the Pure Innocence set called "Being Cute Is What I Do," combined with My Mind's Eye patterned papers. Her outfit is paper pieced.

Supplies
Stamps: Being Cute is What I Do by My Favorite Things
Card stock: SU real red and TE choice snow white
Patterned paper: My Mind's Eye Stella and Rose, Gertie
Ink: memento tuxedo black, Copics, SU real red
Other: Die-namics dies, classic circle Nestie, TE paper flowers and ribbon, Hero Arts rhinestone flower, Kaiser shinny red pearls, yellow candy dots, sewing machine, the Big Shot and dimensionals

Thanks for checking in,
Colleen

Swinging By. . .

2011-05-09T18:14:00.000-07:00

"Swinging by to say. . . . HI all,

Hehe.

I hope your Monday's been a good one. I got home from work, got changed, and came immediately to my stamping space. I started this card last night, but didn't finish before it was time to go to bed. This one is for the current Follow The Recipe #11 challenge on the Catered Crop blog. I missed a couple of the challenges and wanted to get back to playing along.

The sketch that I've used is this month's SFYTT. Love this sketch from Jen! I am sure I'll be using this one more.

The FTR11 ingredients that I've used are:
Patterned paper: polka-dot
Colors: yellow, kraft, white
Color mediums: Copics
Embellishments: Stickles
Tools: Dies
Theme: All Occassion

I've had this Kliban cat stamp for years. I got it at a class I took years ago at a local stamp store. I remember that it was for a class using just black and white. I've used this little guy over the years to make cards for my cat loving friends. I usually color in the daisies, but here I decided to keep them white, like Shasta Daisies, and use some yellow Stickles in the centers.

Supplies
Stamps: Swinging Cat by American Art Stamps, sentiment from TE's In the Park set
Card stock: SU teal, kraft and daffodil. TE choice snow white
Patterned paper: MME Stella and Rose, Gertie
Ink: memento tuxedo black and Copics
Other: classic circle and lacy circle Nesties, TE small scalloped border die, Sizzix embossing folders, sewing machine, white ric-rak, yellow Stickles, Hero Arts gold rhinestone daisy, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Have a wonderful evening and thanks for stopping by,
Colleen

You Did It, Proud Of You

2011-05-08T18:06:00.000-07:00

My sweet, beautiful niece Rachel, is graduating from high school next month. HOW IS THAT POSSIBLE? I'm hoping to be able to fly up to Portland, OR where they live to attend her graduation ceremony. In the mean time, I've used today's Sweet Sunday Sketch to make her graduation card today.

This card did not come together very fast. I kept changing my mind and redoing elements. After several changes though, I'm pretty happy with the it.

As you can see, I rotated the sketch to accommodate the PI graduate. No patterned paper was used, amazingly. I don't know when I've made a card last without it.

Supplies
Stamps: PI "Graduation Girl" by My Favorite Things
Card stock: SU textured red ridding hood and black, TE choice snow white
Ink: memento tuxedo black, Copics, and Spica gold and black
Other: Taylored Expressions Heart impressions plate, SU punches, black and white polka dot ribbon, Zva Creative black pearl flourish,
sewing machine, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Here's a picture of the beautiful graduate:

Have a wonderful week.
Thanks,
Colleen

Party Hearty

2011-05-03T05:00:00.000-07:00

Hi again. I was able to get lots of stamping done on Sunday which means I was able to make some scheduled posts for this week. Today's card I made for a friend's birthday later this month. As you can see, the layout is TESC137.

Supplies
Stamps: Taylored Expressions "Make a Wish"
Card stock: Taylored Expressions blues and choice snow white
Patterned paper: B-day Bash by Imaginisce
Ink: memento tuxedo black, Copics
Other: expresso dimensional pearls, light blue liquid pearls, yellow Stickles, TE small scalloped border die, Kaiser rhinestones, sewing machine, classic oval Nesties, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Thanks,
Colleen

Friends 'Till the End - MFT Challenges

2011-05-02T05:00:00.000-07:00

Happy Monday morning all,

Today's card I made for a couple MFT challenges: MFTWSC17 and MFT May Guest Designer contest. The May guest designer contest's theme is "Blue Jeans and Bling". Cute, yea?

I pulled out another Pure Innocence set that I bought with their last release called "You Color My World". She is SO, so sweet, and as you can see, I had a lot of fun putting her world together.

To fulfill the "blue jeans and bling" criteria, I used the MFT die-namics tear drop tree die to cut some denim, then added some stitching and Kaiser red rhinestones. (I think they look like apples.) Our little PI painter is colored with Copics. Her berets is stamped onto burgundy denim and cut out. I added a little pearl at the top where the button would be. The tip of the paint brush and the paint spots on her palette are glazed with a Sakura glaze pen. More MFT Die-namics dies are used as well as some SU punches and a Sizzix embossing folder. Some bright, summery patterned paper and more stitching help make her scene nice and bright.

Supplies
Stamps: Pure Innocence "You Color My World" by My Favorite Things
Card stock: SU pacific point and marina mist, Neenah cream
Patterned paper: Fly A Kite by October Afternoon
Ink: memento tuxedo black, SU pacific point, and Copics
Other: Die-namics faux crochet border, fresh cut grass, tear drop tree dies, SU punches, Kaiser rhinestones and pearl, SU button, Sizzix EF, blue raffia, sewing machine, Sakura glaze pen, pop-up glue dots, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Thanks and have a great Monday,
Colleen

Thinking of You-Sweet Sunday Sketch 115

2011-05-01T11:12:00.000-07:00

Wow, it's been a whole week since I've been able to stamp. Way too long, so I decided today was going to be stamping day. First thing was to check the Sweet Sunday Sketch on Karen's blog and that's what I started with. Love the simple sketch today and my card took no time at all. Usually, I'm pretty slow at putting my cards together as I tend to create as I go, trying different things out. But this one seemed to just work with what I had in my mind. :)

For todays card, I knew I wanted to use April's Key Ingredients papers again and maybe a stamp set that I hadn't used in awhile. Since these Kitch papers have that "homespun" feel, I settled on a SU set from last year called Garden From the Heart. The drying herbs are perfect to pair with the plaid patterned paper, don't you think?

Adding some sewing around the panels and the dried flowers from the KI kit keeps with the overall feel.

Supplies
Stamps: Garden From the Heart and So Happy For You sets from Stampin' Up
Card stock: TE from April's Key Ingredients
Patterned paper: Kitch - The Girl's Paperie from April's KI
Ink: memento rich cocoa and Copics
Other: labels 4 Nesties, sewing machine, miniature paper roses from April's KI, green candy dots, SU punch, SU texturz plate, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Have a wonderful Sunday afternoon and evening everyone and thanks for stopping by,
Colleen

Blessed To Call You Mother

2011-04-24T21:22:00.000-07:00

I hope everyone had a very happy Easter and weekend. I certainly did. My BFF was visiting for the weekend from Sacramento. On Saturday, we did a little shopping in the morning and went to a pre-Easter brunch at another friend's house in the afternoon. Lots of yummy food and good conversation. Today before she left for the airport, we got in a little stamping.

I made my mom's Mother's Day card using the layout from this week's Sweet Sunday Sketch #114 challenge. Love the sketch this week.

This beautiful, bright patterned paper I picked up yesterday at The Paper Source while we were out shopping. I love how this card turned out, and it went together really quickly.

Supplies
Stamps: Blessed Mother and Baby Blossoms sets by Stampin' Up
Card stock: SU perfect plum, peach parfait and very vanilla
Patterned paper: The Paper Source
Ink: SU perfect plum
Other: Sizzix embossing folder, SU larger oval punch, SU peach parfait ribbon, SU rhinestones, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Have a wonderful week all. Thanks so much for stopping in,
Colleen

April TE "Blast From The Past" Blog Hop

2011-04-20T08:00:00.000-07:00

Welcome to my stop along the April Taylored Expressions "Blast From the Past" blog hop. This month's theme is Clean and Simple. This is not the type of card that I'm used to creating. I love layers! I love embellishments! My card has a little of each, but not too much, so I think it works for today's theme. It went together pretty quickly, if that counts. :)

I started with Sankari's sketch. The butterfly was stamped three times on choice buttercream card stock and three times each on blue and gold patterned papers. The images on the patterned paper were cut out and popped up with dimensionals onto the images on the card stock.

Embellishments are limited to Taylor's Tiny Twinkles in the centers of the butterflies and paper piercing in the corners of the main panel. Both panels are layered over SU not quite navy card stock. The sentiment is punched with a one inch circle punch and layered over a folded teal and brown ribbon. Corners are rounded on the right side of the card and the long panel.

Supplies
Stamps: Taylored Expressions "Garden Party Critters"
Card Stock: TE choice buttercream and SU not quite navy
Patterned paper: My Mind's Eye Stella Rose-Hattie
Ink: memento tuxedo black and SU not quite navy
Other: TE polka-dot ribbon, Taylor's Tiny Twinkles in blue and gold, SU corner rounder and one inch circle punches, dimensionals, SU crafter's tool kit.

Enjoy all of the wonderful entries in today's hop. They are listed below. Thanks so much for stopping by today,
Colleen

Birthday Wishes

2011-04-12T22:17:00.000-07:00

I started this card very late Sunday night, completed it, then last night decided I didn't really like the original scalloped border I had on the bottom. While looking for some ribbon for the top element, I found this black and white polka-dot ribbon. Presto-chango, and I had my finished card.

The layout is from Chupa's Sketchbook Saturday Challenge and the colors come from this week's CR84FN23 Color Challenge. The colors this week are light pink, black and cream.

Supplies
Stamps: Easter Blossoms and So Happy For You sets by Stampin' Up
Card stock: SU black and blushing bride
Patterned Paper: SU
Ink: memento tuxedo black, Copics
Other: SU crocheted lace, pink paper flower (purchased at TE store), Die-namics die, re-used polka-dot ribbon, the Big Shot, pop-up glue dots, SU double sided sticky tape

Have a great Wednesday, and thanks,
Colleen

New Toys to Play With

2011-04-10T16:54:00.000-07:00

I received my latest MFT order yesterday, so naturally, I just had to break some of them out today and play. I picked a new PI girl called "Crazy for Daisies." I've fallen in love with these PI girls. Who wouldn't? :)

I colored her and the daisies with Copics, except her dress is paper pieced with the same yellow plaid paper as the scallop at the bottom of the card. Instead of coloring her flower pin, I used some pink rhinestones to add some sparkle. The panels are zig-zag stitched all around, but I left the scalloped piece loose so it ruffles up. The buttons are threaded with 3 different colors of baker's twine and adhered with popup glue dots.

The layout is Karen's Sweet Sunday Sketch challenge #112. (Love it this week.) I also used several ingredients for the current Follow the Recipe #9 challenge at Linda's Catered Crop blog. The ingredients I used are:

   Patterned paper: stripes and plaid
   Colors: blue and yellow
   Embellishments: bling, buttons and ribbon
   Tools: sewing
   Shapes: scallops

The sentiment is not from the PI set, but rather a SU set. I wanted to make this a Thank You card. My friend has put in an order for three Administrative Assistant Day cards, which is at the end of April, so I thought I'd get started.

Supplies
Stamps: Pure Innocence "Crazy for Daisies" by My Favorite Things and "So Happy For You" by Stampin' UP
Card stock: SU ballet blue and TE choice snow white
Patterned paper: SU Pawstivetly Prints
Ink: memento tuxedo black and Copics
Other: Die-namics Fishtail banner and scalloped scallop border dies, SU buttons, baker's twine, TE pink plaid ribbon, Taylor's Tiny Twinkles, sewing machine, the Big Shot, pop up glue dots, and dimensionals

Here's to a wonderful work week. I have a short one as we are taking this Friday and next Monday off and heading up to the Central Coast wine country (yum!) for a long weekend with friends.

Thanks for stopping by today,
Colleen

Happy Spring

2011-04-10T11:07:00.000-07:00

Hi all,
I finished a couple more Easter cards yesterday. Other than decorating some tins I bought from TE to put some gift cards in for my niece and nephews, I'm finally finished with making Easter projects.

The card I have for you today is made with this week's Sweet Stop sketch #103. I turned the sketch to the side, but all of the elements are there.

Supplies
Stamps: Happy Spring from Taylored Expressions
Card stock: SU early expresso and TE choice snow white
Patterned paper: Kioshi by Basic Grey
Ink: memento tuxedo black, SU bashful blue, Copics
Other: classic circle Nesties, sewing machine, TE glitter brads, crystal Stickles, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Enjoy your Sunday afternoon all,
Colleen

Hello, Friend

2011-04-09T12:19:00.000-07:00

It's a beautiful day today here in San Diego after rain all night long. Looks like we may be in for some more later as clouds are moving in again. We did some garage chores this morning, and now I'm ready to get some more Easter cards made.

For this post, I have a couple cards I put together last night while watching the Padres. Three rain delays and I finally went to bed. :(
The first card is made with yesterday's TESC136 sketch. The wooden buttons and papers are from the March KI kit. Love these papers! In fact, I ordered the 6x6 pad with my last TE order.

Card two also uses papers from the March KI kit. This sketch I found on Splitcoast a few weeks ago. In fact, I've used it a couple times.

Supplies Card 1
Stamps: TE Friendship Blooms (flowers), TE New Beginnings (butterfly), and TE Banner Day One sets
Card stock: TE red and choice buttercream
Patterned paper: My Minds Eye "Stella Rose-Gerty"
Ink: fluid chalk lime pastel, fluid chalk warm red, SU daffodil delight, SU baja breeze and SU always artichoke
Other: TE coordinating flower, butterfly and banner dies, Kaiser rhinestones, TE wooden buttons, SU corner rounder punch, sewing machine, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Supplies Card 2
Stamps: TE New Beginnings
Card stock: TE red, pink, and choice buttercream
Patterned paper: My Minds Eye "Stella Rose-Gerty"
Ink: SU early expresso, fluid chalk warm red
Other: TE Leafy Branch and Frame It Up 1 dies, Kaiser rhinestones, sewing machine, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

I hope you're having a wonderful weekend. Thanks for checking in,
Colleen

Do You Believe In Magic?

2011-04-07T17:43:00.000-07:00

Believe In Magic is the name of this super cute PI girl. I've decked her out in lavender and gave her a pearl wand to perform her magic with.

The sketch is this week's MFTWSC#14. She is stamped then cut out and presented on a Die-namics Dizzy Doily. Her outfit is paper pieced with the background papers and she is colored with Copics. Her wings, purple tights, hair flower, and shoes are colored with Spica pens and in RL there is a really nice sparkle.

I had planned to use the Dizzy border for the right-angle elements, but they seemed to get lost under the doily so I had the idea of cutting the border down the middle and using each piece as a scalloped edge on the patterned paper instead. I like the way it turned out.

Supplies
Stamps: Pure Innocence Girl "Believe In Magic" by My Favorite Things
Card stock: SU orchid opulence, TE choice snow white
Patterned paper: SU Shades of Spring DSP, retired
Ink: memento tuxedo black, Copics, Spica pens
Other: Die-namics Dizzy Doily and Dizzy border dies, SU punches, SU half pearl, quilting pin (for the wand), TE polka dot ribbon, the Big Shot, sewing machine, and dimensionals

Yea, tomorrow's Friday. I hope you all have a great one.
Thanks,
Colleen

You Make My World Happy

2011-04-05T17:41:00.000-07:00

For my post today I made a card for the CR84FN color challenge. This is the first time that I've participated in this color challenge. CR84FN22 uses green, which is one of my favorite colors and inspired me to play along.

I picked up another of my Pure Innocence girls and a Die-namics rolled rose die to make the card. Her cute little pantsuit is paper pieced and the rose is made with the same patterned paper. The layout is MFWSC13.

Supplies

Stamps: Being Cute Is What I Do by MFT

Card stock: SU early expresso and kraft, TE choice buttercream, Kraft corrugated card stock

Patterned paper: My Minds Eye

Ink: memento tuxedo black, Copics

Other: Die-namics rolled rose die, SU corner punch, SU crumb cake seam binding, the Big Shot, dimensionals

Have a great Wednesday all and thanks for stopping by,

Colleen

Springtime Smiles

2011-04-04T05:00:00.000-07:00

Hi again all. I bought a 6 x 6 paper pack of Vintage looking background papers a few weeks ago from K and Company. I thought they would make a perfect backdrop for this silhouette stamp from Stampin' Up. Vintage is not a style that I do, but I see lots of examples around blog land and they look so pretty, so I wanted to give it a try.

I've used April's Sketch For You To Try for the layout. After crinkling up the papers, they were sponged with Tim Holtz distress inks, then sanded with a sanding bar around the edges, including the cream card base.

Supplies

Stamps: Easter Blossoms by Stampin' Up

Card stock: TE choice buttercream, SU ridding hood red, TE medium green

Patterned papers: K and Company

Ink: SU early expresso, Tim Holtz Distress Ink in linen and corduroy brown

Other: SU vintage brads, SU crochet lace, Sizzix Bow Strings EF, scalloped circle Nestie, sanding block, the Big Shot, and dimensionals

Happy Stamping,

Colleen